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TRAVELS

MALTA AND SICILY,

SKETCHES OF GIBRALTAR IN 1827.

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TRAVELS

MALTA AND SICILY,

SKETCHES OF GIBRALTAR,

MDCCCXXVII. ^ ^^^

U,-L-tQ

BY ANDREW BIGELOW,

AUTHOR OF ' LEAVES FROM A JOURNAL IN NORTH BRITAIN AND IRELAND.

BOSTON.

PUBLISHED BY CARTER, HENDEE & BABCOCK.
NEW YORK — ELAM BLISS.

1831.

Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1S31 by
CarterJ Hektdee & Babcock, in the Clerk's office of the District Court
of Massachusetts.

BOSTON CLASSIC PRESS:
I. R. BUTTS.

ADVERTISEMENT.

As it was desirable, not for mere embellishment, but for the sake
of illustration, to introduce some lithograph prints into this work, —
and the author himself being no draughtsman, — he was obliged in
selecting from the materials which he possessed, to avail himself of
the sketches of others. The Topographical Chart of Mount ^tna,
as stated in the Appendix, was framed from two plans transmitted
from a Sicilian friend and correspondent. The prints, entitled Scenery
of Mount ^tna and View of the Ear of Dionysius, differ in nothing-
essential from two engravings which ornament the beautiful quarto
of Capt. Smyth. The Head of La Valette is copied from De Boisgelin,
but improved in the execution. It answers, in the expression, to the
best portraits of the hero. The Bird's-eye View of Malta is substan-
tially the same with the engravings of La Borde and Palmeus, also
adopted by De Boisgelin, but corrected and modified for the present
work. The Ground Plan of Dionysius' Ear was prepared from a
sketch, taken from careful survey, and furnished by an ingenious
Syracusan artist.

PREFACE.

Although nearly three years had elapsed since the tour in
Europe was completed, of a part of which an account is offered in
the following pages, it was not till the last autumn that the author
undertook to arrange and transcribe his notes for the press. In
reviewing them, after so long an interval and with reference to
such a step, he was induced to think that, whatever might be their
specific defects, they contained materials of information, on some
topics, not generally accessible, nor, perhaps, altogether valueless ;
and that a volume could be furnished from them, to fill up a vacant
place in the catalogue of works by American travellers.

Of Malta, an island once famous in history, little of late has
been known. Even its fall, in 1798, when the standard of St
John was struck from its ramparts and the tri-coloured flag planted
in its place, — nay, and its subsequent reduction, as a trophy of
the naval ascendency of England, — were events almost over-
looked amid the mightier political changes then in rapid develop-
ment, and which arrested the attention of the world. Since the
publication of the History by the Chevalier Louis de Boisgelin,*
who has traced the fortunes of the island no lower than the date of
its capitulation to the English, (September, 1800,) it is not known

* ' Ancient and Modern Malta, embracing a History of the Knights of
St Jolm of Jerusalem ; ' London, 2 vols. 4to, 1805.
B

VIU PREFACE.

to the author of these Travels, that any work relating to Malta has
appeared from the press. The accounts of Tourists are of still
elder periods ; the latest which he has met with was published by
a Frenchman, forty years ago ;* and it is sixty years since the visit
ofBrydone. The stay of the latter on the island was limited to
four or five days, and his descriptions are brief and superficial.
The present volume, therefore, may be acceptable to those who
would learn, along with the past, something of the more recent and
the present condition of the Maltese population, and of an island
which, though small, constitutes a little world in itself

Sicily has been more frequently explored ; but the accounts of
travellers are by no means in extensive circulation on this side of
the Atlantic. The best of them are either locked up in foreign
languages, or in costly volumes like those of Hoiiel, La Borde and
others ; or if they have appeared in an English dress and from
British presses, they have not been reprinted in America. In re-
vising the volume now offered to the public, the author consulted
the most approved works to which he could gain access, both to
compare with them for greater accuracy his own observations
and reminiscences, and to gather suggestions upon some sub-
jects which escaped his notice, or required amplification. The
principal of these works were the able ' Memoir ' of Capt. Smyth,
R. N.,t the ' Travels ' of the philosophic Spallanzani,| and the
elaborate ' Voyage ' of Hoiiel ; § in addition to the ' History ' of
De Boisgelin, and ' Malthe' by the French Tourist, already speci-
fied. Br y done was examined ; but though his ' Letters ' are
beautifully written, he was considered as never entitled to any
great credit. As some of the discussions introduced into these
pages involved references to various ancient and erudite authorities,
it is proper to mention, that in all cases where it was possible,
the fountain-heads were resorted to ; and that in the few instances

* ' Malthe, par unVoyageur Francois,' 1791. Though published anonj'^-
mously, it is an authentic and valuable work.

I ' Memoir, descriptive of the Resources, Inhabitants and Hydrography of
Sicily and its Islands,' by W. H. Smyth, London, 4to, 1824.

t ' Travels in the Two Sicilies,' by the Abbe Lazzaro Spallanzani, 1784.

§ ' Voyage Pittoresquedcp, Isles de Sicile and de Malthe.' 4 vols, folio. 1782.

PREFACE. ]X

of unavoidable exception, no citation has been admitted at second-
hand but on unquestionable grounds of correctness.

The form of a Journal, it will be perceived, has been retained
throughout. It was thus that the work originally grew in the
author's hands, being principally, as it purports, a record of daily
occurrences and remarks, often penned in very unfavourable cir-
cumstances, and exacting a heavy deduction from the hours of
grateful rest. But to have adopted another plan of description,
would have required a re-casting of the whole mass of materials, —
a labour beyond his resolution ; — and what may have been gained
in method, might have been lost in simplicity. Notes traced on
the spot have a freshness which a more formal narrative cannot
always supply. A bunch of unsorted wild flowers, with their
leaves unfaded and dews unexhaled, are sometimes preferable to
the choicest exotics, scientifically arranged, and pressed and dried
for an herbarium.

In his descriptive sketches, the author has aimed at distinctness.
He may have failed in the purpose, but his endeavour has uni-
formly been so to frame his descriptions, as to enable the reader to
go along with him; to introduce him into the scenes detailed, and
to place things before him with the same points of view which had
been previously oifered to himself The reflections which arose,
and the feelings suggested from time to time, have accordingly
been expressed. It is possible that they may be thought, with
some matters personal, to be intermixed too liberally. A con-
siderable amount, nevertheless, has been retrenched from the
pages ; and it was fancied that if the scissors were applied more
closely, and the rents made broader, the only thread of connexion
would be destroyed, which binds together the numerous and multi-
form topics falling within the scope of such a work. In a Journal
of Travels, it is the pilgrim's self, — however unworthy he may be
of the honour, — the order, that is to say, of his movements, adven-
tures, observations and impressions, which, for want of a better,
must give the character of ' unity ' to the narrative. For, he
cannot classify his themes : he must describe things as they turn
up, — objects as they lift themselves successively on his eye, — dis-
connected scenes amid which by accident he may be thrown, —
and, perchance, the operations of his mind and the vibrating

X PREFACE.

chord of association as he contemplates the varied and moving
drama around him. If faithful to his task as Journalist, his pen
will pass ' from gay to grave, from lively to severe,' in obedience to
the impulse it takes from the shifting objects which catch his
notice. However, in the present case, if ever the author be thought
intrusive with his remarks, or, his musing not prove particularly
amusing, the reader can easily slip his company ; and by turning
a leaf or two in the volume, he may chance upon other veins of
matter, — may come to scenes, not sentiments, and for feelings,
have facts.

Among the incidental subjects of comment and stricture occur-
ring in these chapters, there are two, which, from their compara-
tive prominency, require a word of explanation ; — These are En-
gland and the Catholics. As respects the last, the author can truly
say, that his early prepossessions were strongly interested in their
Ijehalf generally, so far as the solid claims to estimation of those
of that religious persuasion who were known in his native land,
could favourably influence his mind. The mild piety and spotless
worth of Matignon, of venerated memory; — the eminent virtues,
the almost apostolical gifts and graces of the first Bishop of Boston,
now the Archbishop of Borde aux ; — the talents and learning, the
fervid eloquence, and warm-hearted, expansive philanthropy of
William Taylor, — cut off, alas, in the morning of his bright
day, — these, not to allude to others remaining amongst us, whose
exemplary lives would adorn the most scrupulous Christian pro-
fession, were enough to win a measure of respect for any cause.
No one can reasonably question that the Catholics of the United
States, personally considered, whether lay or clerical, are- as
much entitled to esteem and confidence, as the members of the
strictest Protestant denominations ; and if we turn to the British
Isles, we behold in the Doyles, the Kelleys, and the Lingards,
men, whose names are among the most resplendent ornaments of
religion, letters and humanity. Is it asked then, on what princi-
ples of truth and fairness the sweeping censures can be authorized,
occasionally advanced in the ensuing pages against a faith and its
advocates, which elsewhere are allowed to possess some of the
noblest titlee to commendation ? The answer is, that Popery is one

PREFACE. XI

thing, seen, for example, in our land, contending for a dubious
foothold, and placed side by side of jealous, rival and sharp-sight-
ed sects ; and Popery is another thing where it reigns ' lord of the
ascendant.' It wears one aspect in Republican America, in Eng-
land, in Ireland, and semi-protestant France ; but another, and a
very different one, in Spain, in Italy, in Sicily and Malta. Should
it be alleged that many of its glaring disfigurements in the coun-
tries last named, result not from any evils radically inherent in the
system itself, but are parasitical excrescences engendered by its
temporal riches and political relationships, the suggestion un-
doubtedly is not destitute of weight. But on the other hand, it
may be queried whether the Catholic religion does not foster within
its bosom principles which naturally lead it to aspire to an exclu-
sive predominance ? Whether, history does not show, that it has
steadily coveted wealth as an engine of power, — political influence
as the ladder of self-advancement, — and an intimate alliance of
Church with State, to bring a resistless force to bear on whatever
would threaten, oppose and traverse its pretensions ? Be this as it
may, all may rejoice, even Catholics themselves, that on this lib-
eral soil, with the happy arrangement of checks and balances ex-
isting in the moral as in the political machinery, no sect can
monopolize a paramount authority, — nor in conjunction with the
civil arm, be tempted to the exercise of that spirit of aggressive in-
tolerance, (so well characterised by a late, great statesman,) which
'though decried by all while feeble, is practised by all when in
power.'

In relation to the other topic alluded to, the author may with
equal sincerity declare, that whatever his present feelings may be,
the early bias of his sentiments and attachments pointed to England,
as the country, next to his own, claiming the homage of affection
and almost unqualified admiration.* When the great struggle was
waging between England, and the Continental Powers arrayed
under the Imperial Dictator, the modern Marius, — the sympathies
of the juvenile observer, in common with half of the people of the

* A cordial expression was offered of those feelings and sentiments, in a
little volume referred to on the Title of this work, first published at Boston, in
1821, and re-published in Edinburgh and London, in 1824.

XII PUEFACE.

United States, were enlisted on her side from the behef that she
was contending in a righteous cause, the triumph of which seemed
indispensable to her very existence. When, next indeed, the acci-
dents of war brought this country hito collision with England, and
she, that had been regarded friendly, was proved to be hostile, duty
forbade a compromise of sympathies. They centered where they
belonged ; and while war was lamented as an evil absolutely great,
dishonour in war was deprecated as the greater. Peace ensued;
and the citizens of the United States were prepared to act on the
maxim of their immortal Charter of Independence, accounting
their 'enemies in war, — in peace, friends.' It was fondly hoped
that all asperities were softened down, soon to be completely
removed; and that two nations possessing so many points of
affinity, — having a common language,* a common vigour of
enterprise, a common love of liberty, and the same Spirit of
Laws, — would rejoice in each other's welfare, and cordially unite
for the diffusion of the great principles which they mutually pro-
fess to advocate, among the other nations of the earth. But the
hope was illusory. If the lion were no longer disposed to prey
upon, he was not yet content to lie down with, the lamb. Since
the peace of 1815, a constant feeling of jealousy has been mani-
fested by England towards the United States, — a feeling as un-
wise in its tendencies and operations, as it is incompatible with
true national magnanimity. The British presses, — with but few
exceptions, well known and duly appreciated, — have teemed
with vituperation and abuse on almost everything of cis- Atlantic
origin, — upon the men and measures of the country, its lite-
rature, and the political and social condition of its inhabitants.

* Perhaps, too much is claimed on this score. We have it certified on the
woi'd of a British Captain, that on no two points are the people of England
and the United States more widely separated, than in the peculiarities of
language. From his account it should seem, that the national idioms are as
diverse as the Spanish and the Portuguese, or, haply, as the Gaelic and the
Saxon. [Vide, Basil Hall's Travels, ch. xvi.] It is true, a Yankee might
' guess,' — in default of a better privilege, — that even the astute Captain
has not yet fathomed all the philosophy of the English language ; and that
ihe critic's own shibboleth betrays a nativity cast somewhere else than on
the Southern side of the Tweed.

PREFACE. XIU

It cannot be forgotten that when the ilkistrious champion of
liberty, 'in both worlds,' the great and good La Fayette, visited
the Republic in 1824 — 5, and twelve millions of people then
rose, as one man, to greet his coming ; when amid universal plau-
dits and benedictions, he made his progress through the twenty-
four States of the Union, — such a progress as kings and victors
might envy, but could not purchase, — the British Journals parad-
ed the circumstances of his reception as matters of taunt and rid-
icule ; and even the London Courier could stoop to admit into its
columns doggerel rhymes with the scurrilous insinuation that they
had been inscribed on the triumphal arches erected in Boston, in
honour of that august occasion. English travellers who have ex-
plored the United States, have gone back to repay the hospitali-
ties with which they were loaded, by libelling all that Americans
hold most dear in their country, and its public and domestic
organizations. In evidence of the temper on one of these points,
— it was no longer ago than 1826, that a notable Lieutenant
posted through the States, with the especial purpose of prying
into our docks and marine arsenals, and having raked to-
gether his observations, then hastened home to dedicate his
report to the Lord High Admiral. It purported, that whereas,
he had measured the scantling, counted the guns and summed up
the muster-roll of every line-of-battle ship, he had proved the
Yankee Navy to be only a silly bugbear, or at best a splendid
phantom. The affidavit of such a competent witness was pub-
lished with acclamations, and huzzaed from Land's End to
Johnny Groat's. — The next year brought another tourist, a certain
philosophic Captain, to our shores, who, because he had written a
romance on Loo Choo, felt competent to indite tales on the na-
tives of these Western wilds. But the quasi-aboriginals whom he
met with here, by no means found that favour in his eyes which
the unsophisticated children of an opposite hemisphere enjoyed.
Americans were characterised by one negative and two positives
in their national traits, which were insuperable bars to the lik-
ings of the gentle stranger. They had no ' king,' nor the least
penchant for a king ; and they did happen to have some ' coin '
which they valued, and 'weapons' which they knew how to

XIV PREFACE.

manage. Whether from these or some other causes, throughout his
peregrinations from Maine to Louisiana, the worthy Captain found
naught that was fair and goodly, but on every hand a barren
waste. It was a region, it seems, all swept and ravaged by ' the
blighting tempest of Democracy.' But fortunately, he had only-
to cross into Canada, and the scene changed, and with it his
spirit revived. The landscape appeared clad in softest verdure ;
the roses sprang up beneath the traveller's foot ; Hesperian fruits
charmed the eye and regaled the taste ; the people, in short, in-
nocent as happy, dwelt in a terrestrial Eden : — And no wonder.
For there, avers this Oracle, the beams of the royal favour shine
without a cloud ; every man sits unmolested under ' his vine
and figtree,' — nay, doubtless, —

Miraturque novas frondes, et non sua poma.

It is unnecessary to multiply particulars on this subject.
Enough it is to be sensible of the force of the prejudice, and the
results of those causes and agencies now barely glanced at.
The citizen of the United States must be more or less than a
man, whose sensibilities are not affected by them. And the
fact unquestionably is, that the minds of the great body of the
American population, even those formerly most attached to Great
Britain, are revolutionised ; — that the feelings of all are fast tend-
ing to a total estrangement from her whom once they were proud
to call the parent country ; — and where England might have
found a warm, devoted, uncalculating ally, she seems destined one
day to encounter a most resolute foe. The people of two and
a half millions whom she sought to trample in scorn in 1775 ; —
whom, with its seven millions, she accounted as insignificant and
pusillanimous in 1812 ; — whom, in 1831 with a census exceeding
thirteen millions, she deems an object just worthy enough of her
determined ill-will and jealousy, — may have a value in its friend-
ship and a weight in its arm, wherever bestowed, when, in but
twenty years hence, it shall have swelled and multiplied to more
millions than at this hour are comprehended in the Three British
Kingdoms.

Yet, it was not from a wish to promote such feelings of growing
alienation, so far as the slender influence and unvarnished repre-

PREFACE. XV

sentations of an humble individual can avail anything, that state-
ments have been offered and opinions expressed in this work
which occasionally reflect upon the policy and conduct of England
or her agents. Exceptionable matters were not sought out for the
mere sake of animadversion. It was deemed, nevertheless, within
the province of a journal, to remark upon them with freedom when
they fell in the way. The examples of Englishmen are adduced
to show that the language of retort and censure, would be fully
warranted, — more especially, when borne out by truth and honesty ;
but still, a spirit of recrimination, as such, has by no means been
indulged. — From the government of that country, constituted as it
now is, it is to be hoped that a better order of things will arise at
home and abroad ; that among the other changes to ensue, a more
liberal tone and bearing will hereafter be manifested and encour-
aged towards the United States, and that the cordial good will,
which should exist between two such nations but vv^hich has been so
lamentably shaken and impaired, may yet be restored and cement-
ed. That the sentiments recorded in some parts of this volume
on the topics under allusion, are entertained by a no small portion
of even the British population, is shown by the thousands of British-
born subjects annually discharged upon our shores, and the tens
of thousands of self-expatriated emigrants already domesticated
among us, who have fled, as they profess, from political grievances,
past misrule, and the insufferable pressure of the national burdens
in Old England.

It is one of the benefits which an American derives from foreign
travel, to return doubly satisfied with the country of his birth.
Comparing its exuberant blessings with all that he may elsewhere
find, he perceives them immeasurably preeminent. If his imagi-
nation may have previously formed an overwrought estimate of
the general advantages of the people of some other clime, he
comes back with a mind disabused. He brings with him an en-
lightened conviction, that nowhere else is an equal sum of moral,
political and social privileges dispensed, as here ; and his heart
yearns, by consequence, with a deeper, a more thorough affection
to the land where those privileges are so diffusively experienced.
He rejoices in ' his country — his whole country ; ' and hails it as
the best, the fairest, which the sun visits in its circuit.
c

XVI PREFACE.

If, in the Travels now presented to the reader, the author has
succeeded in illustrating the grounds of such a sentiment ; if he
has furnished any additional helps for forming, directly or by
contrast, a juster appreciation of the superior condition of Ameri-
can citizens generally to that of the subjects of some foreign gov-
ernments ; if he may contribute to quicken in the bosoms of but a
few of his countrymen a throb of heartfelt patriotism, in reflecting
that ' this is their own, their native land,' — the purpose, most
anxiously contemplated by the present publication, will be ac-
complished.

Ma&cu 31, 1831.

ERRATA.

Page 118, line 15 from bottom, for ' deafened/ read ' deafening.'

a 169 £< 5 " '^ for ' ship docks,' read ' ships, docks.'

" 265^ " 6 " top, for ' capitol,' read ^ capital.'

" 267, " 15 '' bottom, for ' irruption,' rea'd ' eruption.'

'' 311, " 11 " top, for ' Anpaus,' read ' Anapus.'^

« 348, " 3 " bottom, for ' singularly,' read ' significantly.'

it 427 " 15 *' " for 'was majestically,' read 'was seen majeeti'

cally.'
19 '' top, for 'Ixiii,' read 'Ix.'

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.

VOYAGE TO THE STRAITS.

Reflections on Departure. — Ocean Scenery. — Thanksgiving at Sea. —
Rough Gales. — Gulf Stream 5 Speculations on its Drift and Tempera-
ture. — Inhabitants of the Deep. — Sea Musings. — An Invitation. — Dis-
comforts of a Voyage. — Nautical Anecdote. — The Azores ; their Aspect
and Phenomena. — Course shaped from St Michaels. — Thunder Storm.
— Approach to Land. — Cape Trafalgar. — Spanish Coast. — African Con-
tinent. — Sublimity of Land and Sea Views. — Appearance of Gibraltar, —
Arrival. — Visits from Shore. — incidents. — Evening on board

CHAPTER II.

GIBRALTAR.

Interview with the Health-Physician. — Release from Quarantine.—
Impressions on Landing. — Appearance of the Mole and Streets, — Sun-
day J Religious Services in the Cathedral and Government Church; —
Comments. — Spanish Ladies. — Costumes. — Jews. — Restraints of the
Inhabitants — Survey of the Fortifications, — Reflections. — Ascent to
the South Pinnacle. — Grandeur of the Prospect. — St Michael's Cave.

Embarkation of Troops for Portugal. — Military Pomp. — Strength of

Gibraltar. — Costliness of its Maintenance. — A Query on its Utility . . 30

CHAPTER III.

GIBRALTAR.

Spanish Lines. — A Walk into the Country. — St Roque. — Dulness
of a Soldier's Life in a Garrison. — Impolicy of maintaining Troops

XVlll CONTENTS.

in Idleness. — Feelings of the Military. — Sternness of Army Regula-
tions.—Illustration. — An Afternoon on the Mountain. — Arrival of the
Tresident's Message. — Cry of War. — England and the United States,

— Dispositions of the Moorish Regency. — Accommodations in Gibraltar.

— A Whimsical Scene. — Literature. — Mr. H— 55

CHAPTER IV.

PASSAGE UP THE MEDITERRANEAN.

British Packet. — Shore of Algiers. — Features of Sardinia. — Cagliari. —
Trapani. — Scenes of the Vth Book of the iEneid. — The ^gades.

— Pantellaria. — Second View of its Beauties. — Appearance of Goza.

— First Glimpse of Malta. — Arrival in the Grand Harbour. — City
and Suburbs. — The Parlatorio. — English and American Flag-ships. —
Ceremony of Hoisting their Colours. — Quarantine Establishment and
Regulations. — Strictures. — Observations on Small Pox. — Sketch of a
Lazaretto. — Removal to La Valetta

CHAPTER V,

SI A L T A .

Aspect of the City. — Style and Material of Building. — Curious Bal-
conies.— Condition of the Inhabitants. — Peculiarities of Dress. —
Sunday in Malta. — A Caleche. — Excursion to St Antonio. — Aque-
duct, — Maltese Husbandry.— Grand Masters' Garden. — Language of the
Islanders.— Specimens of Native Poetry. — Rhodian Families. — Cath-
olic Churches. — Character and Influence of the Clergy — Policy of
the Government 5 Past and Present. — Spiritual Courts. — Festival in
Honour of St Paul. — Image of the Saint. —Thoughts on the Effects of his
Doctrine ......••• H^

CHAPTER VI

MALTA.

Prosperity of Malta under the Order of St John. — Privileges of the
People. — Testimony of the Chevalier De Boisgelin. — Changes wrought
on the Face of the Island. — Balance of Trade, how adjusted. — Soil,.

CONTENTS. XIX

whence obtained. — Retrospect of Rhodes. — Military Erections. — Ge-
neral Forecast of the Order ; its Valour. — Climate, and Fruits of the
Season. — Inventive Shifts of the Inhabitants. — Marquis of Hastings. —
Greek Pirate. — English Yacht. — Commerce of the Port. — Visit on
Board the Revenge. — Treatment of Convicts. — Danger in Former
Times from Captives. — A Peep Within Doors ; Doings Without. —
A Maltese Barber. — Beggars. — An Anecdote 145

CHAPTER VII

MALTA.

Commodore Rodgers. — Condition of the North Carolina. — Sentiments
in Malta. — Sir H. Neale's Reply to Mr Shaler. — Policy towards
the Barbary Powers. — Departure of the Commodore. — St John's Cathe-
dral. — Relic of the Saint. — Ceremonies in the Days of the Knights. —
Tomb of La Valette. — Churches ; Greek, Catholic, and Protestant. —
Malta, the ' Eye of the Mediterranean.' — Government Library. — Mis-
sionary Presses) Labours, Difficulties, Prospects. — St Paul's Bay. —
Vipers. — Citta Vecchia. — Singular Grotto. — Extraordinary Catacombs.
— Distribution of the Maltese Population. — Project of Mulberry Plan-
tations.— Geology of the Island. — Ancient Inundation. — Culture of
the Fig. — Caprification. — Treading the Wine Press . , . 181

CHAPTER VIII.

MALTA.

Catholic Processions. — Government Palace 5 Paintings. — Armoury of
the Knights ; Trophies. — Giraffe. — Arrival of his Majesty's Ship
Asia. — Egyptian Mummy. — Burmola and Vittoriosa j St Angelo. —
Opening of the Carnival. — Second Day of the Sports. — Indulgences ;
Votive Gifts. — Eurocljdon. — Conclusion of the Carnival. — An Inci-
dent. — Catastrophe. — Morning Contemplations. — Hospitals. — House
of Industry. — Asylum for the Poor. — Insane Department. — Found-
ling. — Monte di Pieta. — Conservatorio. — Early Marriages. — Monas-
tic Vows. — Morals of the Knights. — Customs. — Festivals. — St Gre-
gory 222

XX CONT.'DNTS.

CHAPTER IX.

MALTA.

University. — College of Priests. — Schools. — A Protestant Convert. —
Religious Fanaticism. — Dr Pinkerton and the Bible Society. —
Sinister Influence of the Government; Causes. — British Colonies. —
Fate of the Knights. — A Motto. — Prospect of Mt. ^tna and the
Shore of Sicily. — Remarks on the Phenomenon Penitential Pilgri-
mages. — A Parade. — Further Observations on the Appearance of iEtna.

— Prayers and Masses for the Dead. — Air of Malta. — Domestic
Items, — Invasion of the Island by the French. — Fleet of Buonaparte.

— Comparison between Hompesch and La Valette. — Siege by the
English. — Sufferings of the Inhabitants. — Gen. Vaubois. — Fall of
Malta. — Parting Retrospect ...... 255

CHAPTER X.

ARRIVAL IN SICILY.

Departure from Malta. — Sicilian Brigantine. — Regulations on Board.

— Cape Passaro. — Superstition of the Padrone. — Arrival in Syracuse.

— Reception on Shore. — Port OfBcers. — A Fellow Lodger. — Accom-
modations. — Cathedral Square. — General View. — Temple of Minerva.

— Museum. — Ancient Bath. — Fountain of Arethusa ; Modern Nymphs.

— Alpheus. — Casino. — Country Scenery. — Tomb of Archimedes. —
Street of Sepulchres. — Latomise. — Ear of Dionysius. — Greek The-
atre.— Amphitheatre. — Character of the Old Romans . . . 281

CHAPTER XI.

SYRACUSE.

Antiquity of the City. — Wastes of Mortality. — Descent to the Cata-
combs. — Early Usages in the Disposal of the Dead. — Remarkable
Tomb. — Vespers, — Convent and Gardens of the Capuchins. — Grave of
a Duellist. — Evening on the Sea-shore. — Fatal Marshes. — Temple of
Jupiter Olympius. — Encampment of Himilco, — Conquests by Timoleon
and Marcellus, — Ancient Opulence of Syracuse. — Death of Archi-
medes,— River Anapus. — Fountain of Cyane, — Rape of Proserpine, —
Papyrus. — Second Visit to the Ear of Dionysius 3 a Theory. — Ameri-
can Cemetery. — Sicilian Habitations, — Titles. — Political Signs 3 A
Contrast. — Stagnation of Trade. — Citizens 310

CONTENTS. XXI

CHAPTER XII.

JOURNEY TO CATANIA.

Preliminaries. — Last View of Syracuse. — Suburban Tombs. — Ani-
mal Traits. — Augusta and Hybla. — Leontine Fields.' — Sicilian Inn.

— Aspect of the Country. —Olive Groves 5 Vineyards.— Rural Economy.

— A Ford. — Approach to Mt. JEtna. — Magnifieence of the Scenery.

— A Meeting. — Entrance to Catania. — Former Catastrophes of the
City. — Present Prosperity. — Streets and Piazza. — Lavas. — Eruption
of 1669. — Sieste. — Travellers' Annoyances. — Ancient Theatres. —
Baths. — Publiclustitutions . . . . . .337

CHAPTER XIII.

CATANIA.

Benedictine Monastery. — Grand Organ. — Father Emiliano. — Mendi-
cant Orders. — Visit from a Franciscan ; An Appeal. — Free Think-
ers. — Philosophy vs. Moses. — Inconclusive Reasoning on the Age of
Lavas. — Morbid Fancies. — A Cottage in the Country. — Local Prefer-
ences. — Prince of Biscari's Museum. — Statues of the Gods } their Con-
dition. — Monumental Tablets. — Varieties. — Cleopatra; a Criticism. —
Beauty of the Catanians. — Cavalier- Servente. — Veils. — Obstacles to
the Ascent of iEtna. — Catana Antiqua, — Modern Superstitions. —
Jesuits' Convent, — Nunnery of St Benedict 3 Ceremonies. — Life in a
Cloister. — Phases of the Mountain. — Absurd Divisions of the Civil Day.
— Ancient Solarium ....... 362

CHAPTER XIV.

MOUNT ^TNA.

Departure from Catania. — Lower Region" of the Mountain. — Change
of Climate. — Nicolosi. — Monte Rosso. — Effects of Eruptions. — Mul-
titude of Extinguished Craters. — Speculations ; Inferences. — Vastness
of Mount iEtna. — Physical Connexions. — Cabin Fireside. — Sketches
in the Forest. — Upward Tour. — Volcanic Lightning. — Gloomy Pre-
sages. — Laboriousness of the Ascent. — A Tempest. — Flight of the
Guide. — Perilous Exposure. — Extrication. — Descent to the Woody
Zone. —Return to Nicolosi. —The Philosophic Brothers. — Departure
for Giarre. — Piedmontana. — ^tna at Day Break, — Magnificence of
the Sunrising. — Grandeur of the Volcano . . . .391

XXll CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XV.

JOURNEY TO MESSINA.

Route Resumed from Giarre. — Observations on MaParia. — Mascali.

— Fiume Freddo. — Site of Naxos. — Giardini. — Taormina Features

of the Scenery. — Highways and Byways. — A Rencontre. — View
of Reggio. — Messina. — Retrospective Survey. — Disappearance of Ban-
ditti. — A Greeting. — Prospect from the Marina. — >City and Harbour.

— Commerce. — Nuns. — Cathedral 5 Epistle Diplomatic. — Ride to the
Faro. — Scylla and Charybdis. — Poetic Fictions ; Analysis. — Present
Phenomena of the Straits. — Memorable Incidents in the Messineso
Annals. — Earthquake of 1783. — Field of its Ravages. — M. Dolomieu's
Hypothesis j Application. — Preparations for Departure. — Review of the
Condition of Sicily. — Conclusion . . . . . . 421

NOTES 461

APPENDIX.

No. I. — Memoir descriptive of the Vegetation of certain Plants on
Mount iEtna ..... ... 621

No. II. — Register of Observations on the Temperature of the
Ocean 527

TRAVELS, &c.

CHAPTER I.

VOYAGE TO THE STRAITS.

Reflections on Departure. — Ocean Scenery. — Thanksgiving at Sea. — Rough
Gales. — Gulf Stream j Speculations on its Drift and Temperature. — In-
habitants of the Deep. — Sea Musings. — An Invitation. — Discomforts of a
Voyage. — Nautical Anecdote. — The Azores; their Aspect and Pheno-
mena.— Course shaped from St Michaels. — Thunder Storm. — Approach to
Land. — Cape Trafalgar. — Spanish Coast. — African Continent. — Sublimity
of Land and Sea Views. — Appearance of Gibraltar. — Arrival. — Visits
from Shore. — Incidents. — Evening on board.

On Tuesday, November 28, 1826, the vessel wherein I had
taken passage for Gibraltar, weighed anchor, and set sail from
Boston. She was a brig of considerable burthen, strongly
built, — an important requisite for a wintry voyage, — and carry-
ing a small armament. The latter was a precautionary equip-
ment, the vessel being destined to proceed from the Straits to
the Cape Verd Isles, and thence, to a port in Brazil. The
captain was obviously at home on the deck ; and besides being
reputed a good officer, was civil and obliging. The voyage, on
the whole, promised to be safe and tolerably comfortable, though
it might prove boisterous. A favorable breeze filled our sails,
and soon the goodly spires of Boston were receding from
the view.

It is not easy to describe to those who have not been called
to the trial, the painful emotions which, in a bosom of common
sensibility, must be experienced in bidding adieu to one's home
and native land, though for an anticipated limited period. I
had many such feelings to contend with ; and the sadness of
1

% VOYAGE TO THE STRAITS.

separation from the friends and kindred left behind me, weighed
heavily on my heart.

Ten years before, I had, indeed, left the paternal roof, and
embarked on a voyage to the old world, both to prosecute my
studies in the profession to which I had been devoted, and to
visit divers cities and kingdoms. It was painful to take leave
even under those circumstances ; but the youth, barely arrived
at the last term of his minority, feels widely different from the
man, when ten years more are added to his age. To the
former, the many flattering pictures of hope, and the visions of
a vague, but romantic and delighted anticipation respecting the
countries to be visited, would serve to alleviate the regrets of
leave-taking. The period, however, that had since elapsed,
had greatly chilled the ardor of such feelings and day dreams.
What sorrow is. I had then scarcely known ; and that, not
strictly to feel. Since, I had tasted something of this world's
trials, and had learned their heart-wearing, dispiriting and ex-
hausting influence. Then, I was going to set foot, first, on a
soil vv^hich 1 might, in some sense, call my own ; for it is the
soil of a land that once knew the homes, and still embosoms
the sepulchres of my forefathers. I was going to England, —
to a country, ' high and palmy ' in fame and greatness ; — to a
people with whom I felt some congeniality, — a people, whom I
was taught to regard, as no less free than brave, no less intelli-
gent and high-minded than powerful. And whither now ? To
shores fair indeed, and decked with monuments of ancient and
modern grandeur, but all overshadowed by despotism and su-
perstition ; — to nations sunk in political abasement, popular igno-
rance, and lowest degeneracy of morals. And when the coast
of my native state was fading from my eye, when I looked on
the now cold and bleak hills, the bare islands and leafless forests
around ; when I turned on the one hand to the sedgy sands of
Cape Cod, and on the other, to the rocky barrier of Cape Ann ;
when I thought of the hardy and virtuous yeomanry which
Massachusetts boasts, with spirits free as the keen winds which
now sweep over her soil, — when next I glanced a reflection on

REFLECTIONS ON DEPARTURE. ii

the climes, though soft and beautiful, whither 1 was bound, and
the moral pestilence that breathes over them, I felt the power
of the ties which bind me to the Land of the Pilgrims, and
lifted the ejaculation that I might be permitted once more in
safety to behold it.

But there was another and more painful feeling in my bosom,
as, at this time, I took leave of home and of country. When
before, the vessel wherein I had embarked was parting her
moorings and putting forth into the deep, there stood one upon
the pier who watched my departure, I well knew, with a
keenness of solicitude, and on whose form I gazed, so long as
that form could be distinguished, with every sentiment of love,
and gratitude, and veneration. It was a father. His con-
cern for my welfare had then saved me every care. It had
already ensured me the means of rational enjoyment, and every
desirable facility for the acquisition of the objects in view during
the contemplated term of my absence ; and that same anxious
affection followed me with a parent's blessing whithersoever J
went. But he was now no more : — and when with the sadness
of that reflection, I considered my present augmented responsi-
bleness, through the ties which bound me to surviving relatives,
I almost condemned the resolution that led me forth, though in
quest of health, amid balmier airs, and under more temperate
suns, to mix, as a solitary stranger, in the distant stir of a heart-
less world. Sleeping or waking, the images of the friends I
had left, were present to my mind. Once in a dream, mo-
mentary but vivid, I fancied myself returned to them, and that
my wanderings were over, and 1 awoke in gladness. But it was
only to hear the plash of the billows without, and the deep mur-
mur of the night breeze as it swept through the rigging of the
bark, which was rapidly bearing me away from home, — ' sweet
home,' — and its scenes.

The wind continued fresh through the night, occasionally
blowing in heavy flaws, and raising a considerable swell. By
early dawn, the land was wholly shut down, and left many
leagues behind us. Going upon deck, and casting a first glance

VOYAGE TO THE STRAITS.

to the West, I imagined for a moment that I espied hills edging
the horizon. But their dark forms quickly fell, and showed, as
others arose, that they were but watery heaps. I looked for
other objects. Here and there a white streak was discernible.
Was it a sail ? No ; it was the curling crest of some wave
taller than its fellows, which speedily disappeared. Not a
bird flew ; and the loneliness of the scene had a character of
impressiveness and solemnity.

The day succeeding, (Thursday,) was the season set apart
in my native state for the Festival of annual Thanksgiving.
Absence from the pleasures of the religious and social meetings
which this time-consecrated anniversary affords, — pleasures so
dear from the influence of earliest association and immemorial
usage, — was a subject of natural regret. But my heart was with
those whose praises ascended from temples to the same adora-
ble and all-bountiful Creator ; and in thought, 1 mingled with
more than one little group, which subsequently was gathered in
cheerful gratitude around the festive board. It was pleasing to
observe the force of early custom and attachments derived from
the ' Land of steady habits,' operating among hardy tars. The
officers and crew were from a common neighborhood, a small
northern port ; and with due subordination, a fellowship of kindly
feeling prevailed among them. Although circumstances pre-
cluded a religious service during the earher part of the day,
leisure was afforded to all ; the captain moreover, had laid in
appropriate stores for the occasion. Both cabin and forecastle
were furnished with generous cheer. A decorous hilarity
reigned forward ; and the day closed in with mirthful converse
and light-hearted song.

Dec. 2, — Evening. — For the last two days we have been
sailing with strong and prosperous breezes, but which, within a
few hours have increased to fresh gales. The heave of the sea
has very considerably risen ; and this evening, some water having
broke into the cabin through the windows, the dead-lights have
been lashed in. This is seldom a pleasant augury; and the pros-
pect without is not the most cheerful. The night is moonless.

ROUGH GALES.

The clouds are unusually heavy and black ; and the vessel, as
she breasts the waves, receives ever and anon a heavy beat upon
her bows. Yet she rushes on joyously through the main, with the
speed of the fabled sea-horse ; and as the ocean sparkles with
unusual brightness about her path, she seems to plough her way
through ' hail-stones and coals of fire.'

Dec. 6. — After the disquietudes of a heavy gale, I resume
my pen. — On the evening of the 3d instant, everything por-
tended a storm, and there was reason to fear one of peculiar
violence. In the course of that night, orders were repeatedly
issued to take in sail, the gale every half hour increasing with
perceptible severity. The ensuing day brought no abatement.
It was a fixed and powerful North-wester ; the wind at times
indeed, lulling, but only to muster strength, and shortly to
return with accumulated vehemence, bearing with it showers of
rain or hail. Fortunately, it blew directly in our favor. There
was no laying to, had we wished it, but with danger ; and after
handing all our sails except a few yards of canvass, the better
to keep the vessel steady, she was left to scud before the storm.
In the afternoon of the 4th, the power of the gale was very
great. The officers and hands were all collected on the quar-
ter deck, the captain himself taking the helm, and three men
being stationed on either side of the tiller to assist him in turning
it as he gave the necessary orders. The sounds of his stentor
voice were heard amid the heavy trampling of the seamen, the
angry dash of the billows, and the piping of the storm. The
sea continuing to make, it rolled, towards sunset, in dismal
heaps. It was the crisis of the gale, as in the evening following
it partially subsided. Still, through all that night and the next
day it sped from the same steady point, with blasts of piercing
cold ; nor was it till this morning that it broke and gradually fell.
The sea did not so soon subside. It has continued through
the day violently agitating the vessel ; the more so, in conse-
quence of a breeze springing up in another quarter, and pro-
ducing a counter drift to the waves, the effect of which has
been exceedingly unpleasant.*

* See Note 1.

0 VOYAGE TO THE STRAITS.

No one can know, without personal experience, the in-
conveniences of a storm at sea. Aniong the troubles may-
be reckoned the unceasing tossings of the ship, which of
course prevent everything like rest. To sit up, to stand, or
to walk are equally out of the question. The passenger can
neither read nor write, for the ' dead lights ' are in, and
he must take to his berth — but not to sleep. He is thrown
from side to side by the alternate rollings of the ship, and
sometimes is actually in danger of being flung from his cot.
Much as he may try to brace and compose himself in his nar-
row quarters, he will find it all in vain. Worn and exhausted,
— almost dislocated he may be, — still no slumber will visit his
eyes. He will have to count the hours of the livelong night as
well as the tedious day ; and time will seem to creep with snail-
like pace. In the evening he will say. Would it were morning ;
and in the morning his comfort will be to reverse the aspiration.

Dec. 7. — We are now in the Gulf Stream. We had touch-
ed it as early as the 1st inst., when a thermometer immersed in
the sea, indicated a temperature of fifty four degrees, which was
four more than on the previous day at the same hour. Pursuing
our course, a daily increase has been remarked in the warmth
of the water till the 5th inst., when I found that the mercury had
risen to sixtyeight degrees exactly and there it has stood. Our
place at present is lat. 38o and long. 43° 40'. Now that at
this distance, considering the long course which the stream has
run from its leaving the Gulf of Mexico to the Grand Bank, and
thence in a southeasterly direction hither, — a distance not less
than twentytwo hundred English miles, — it should retain so
high a temperature is quite remarkable. I will assume its warmth
on leaving Cape Florida at seventy eight degrees, which is prob-
ably near the truth ; accordingly in all this long run, the water has
lost but about ten degrees of heat ; and as the current continues
to proceed though with a gradually diffused and fainter move-
ment till reaching the western coast of the African continent,
where, falling under the influence of the trade winds, a drift again
sets forth to the Gulf of Mexico, to traverse in the same

GULF STJIEAM. 7

appointed course its path through the Atlantic, — it is curious to
reflect that a large mass of the self same waters may constantly
revolve in this vast sweep of six or seven thousand miles, and
a considerable proportion of its temperature, acquired under the
fervid suns of the South, be retained through the residue of
its mighty circuit.

The distinct existence and track of this stream across the
ocean, must account for the phenomenon of the sudden disap-
pearance of the icebergs which annually come down from the
Arctic seas into the Atlantic. I say sudden, for these huge
masses are regularly found to proceed, — at least some of them
each year, — as far as the parallel of 41° North; yet none
of them have been met with more than about a degree farther
South. This has been explained by some on the supposed
action of the bottom of the Grand Bank, presuming that the tem-
perature of the sea over it is higher than that of the deep ocean
to the eastward. Whereas the contrary is the fact ; rocks and
shoals being ascertained to be conductors of the warmth of their
incumbent waters, and it being found by actual experiment, that
the sea over the Grand Bank is twelve or fifteen degrees colder
than outside of it. Here then is no sufficient explanation of the
fact of the disappearance of the islands of Arctic ice shortly after
their reaching the fortyfirst or fortysecond degree of north lati-
tude. Neither can a change of climate, a higher atmospheric
temperature, so soon after leaving the southern limb of the Grand
Bank account for their destruction. The true cause can only be
their coming into contact with the waters of the Gulf Stream,
which would require but a short time to dissolve them. Were
it not for this operation, these formidable impediments to navi-
gation would be found many degrees farther south, and perhaps,
here and there, over the whole North Atlantic the year through.
For these ices being oftentimes of immense bulk and extent,
and the temperature of the broad ocean but slightly vary-
ing, — nay, that temperature immediately around these bodies, as
well as the air to a considerable extent, being found to be uni-
formly reduced by their presence and power of condensation,

8 VOYAGE TO THE STRAITS.

frequently not less than fourteen degrees, — it would obviously
take a long period for such unwieldy masses to melt and be
destroyed. Hence one benefit, and that a no small one, results
to mariners from the influence of the Gulf Stream, to coun-
terbalance the eternal fogs, and rains, and squalls, the thunder
gusts and hail storms, which envelop and track this almost
Stygian current from the shore of Florida to the Azores. ^

Dec. 8. — Nothing material has occurred since yesterday.
The weather has been comparatively moderate, approaching,
during the night, for the first time since our weighing anchor, to
a calm. A number of flying fish sported last night around the
vessel, one of which leaped on board and was taken. He was
about as large as an alewife. This morning he was served at
breakfast and found quite palatable. In the taste of the food
there was nothing peculiar. .

In sailing over these vast watery tracts the wonder arises, why
the inhabitants of the deep do not pay us more frequent visits,
or at least, do not oftener exhibit themselves ? It is rare that we
are favored with a glimpse of any. Occasionally a shoal of
porpoises or of blackfish is seen ; a whale more rarely just shows
himself and spouts. In a smooth sea the pilot-fish, satellites of
the shark, appear, but seldom. Now and then, even in the
roughest weather, the tiny nautilus spreads its graceful sail, and
just under the surface of the blue main the dolphin perhaps
displays his brilliant dyes. Yet sometimes, for the livelong
day not a creature is discerned ; and saving our little floating
abode, all around is one vast solitude.

If, however, 'full many a gem ' is produced in the * dark un-
fathomed caves ' beneath us, why not many an animal of un-
known and unconceived species and forms? Is it probable that
one of a hundred, nay, a thousand of the classes of beingswhich
people this abyss, has ever appeared to the eye of man ? When
we consider the depths of the sea which, though not strictly
bottomless, nevertheless descend, it is probable, as far below the
surface, as terrestrial mountains rise above it, — islands in oceans
being themselves but the peaks or table-lands of submarine

INHABITANTS OF THE DEEP. 9

mountains, — how vast are the spaces capable of affording ac-
commodation and nourishment to innumerable races of ani-
mals I And if but the surface of the earth teems with life, would it
be consistent with rational views of the analogies of Providence to
suppose that the ocean realms are not proportionably filled, —
especially when it is computed that three fifdis of the superficies
of the globe are covered with water ? It must surely therefore be
idle to refuse assent to accounts of the appearance of any new
monster of the deep, if authenticated by credible witnesses, sim-
ply because such a creature was never before beheld. The time
has gone by, indeed, when stories of outre monsters, discovered
in distant lands, such as unicorns, dragons, or similar heteroclites,
can longer hope for credit. And why? Because aside from
their palpable absurdity, the terrestrial world has been pretty
thoroughly explored ; and the many prodigies related by over
credulous travellers, the Major Longbows of former times, are
now properly classed with ' old wives' fables. But not so with
the marvels of the mighty deep. Who has descended to explore
its abyss, or muster and enrol its tenants ? What second Adam
has summoned them, and at the call they have come and re-
ceived names from him ? Yet should a native from our Northern
shore so much as hint his belief in the existence of a sea-
serpent, he might very soon see cause to repent his incautiousness
by the jeers he would have to encounter. He might plead his
innocence of intentional heresy, and demand what established
principle of faith he subverted by affirming what his own eyes
beheld, eyes ever wakeful to a phenomenon because familiar
with all the usual appearances upon the seas. As a landsman,
especially, I am sensible of running no little hazard in inti-
mating an impression that a huge aquatic animal, and perhaps
more than one of the species, has actually, of late years,
visited the coast of New-England, which, though if drawn from
the water and subjected to accurate view, might not be found to
be exactly of a serpent form, would yet prove as wonderful a
creature and as much a stranger to our shores as Leviathan or
Behemoth.

10 VOYAGE TO THE STRAITS.

Dec. 9. — For want of other matters of interest, I resume my
notes. — I perceive on looking back to some of my observations
of yesterday, that I assumed the profound of the ocean, at least
without the polar circles, to be a fluid mass. Is it so ? That
notion has been questioned and denied. What opinion, by the
way, has not ? It has 6een asserted that water in its natural state
is frozen, that everything which can be made liquid by the
communication of heat will return to a solid by its withdraw"
ment, and hence the perpetual congelation of the sea around
the poles.

Then it has been reasoned, that the heat of the sun on the
surface of the globe being limited, and as it penetrates the latter
growing gradually weaker, a point there must be w^here the in-
fluence of the solar rays ceases. It is next queried, May we not
suppose a depth where the temperature of the sea is below thirty-
two degrees ; and must not its bottom then be ice ? — Unhappily
for the argument, the experiments of Count Rumford have shown
that ice always forms at the surface of water, and could it by any
means be once produced at the bottom of the ocean it must, on
simple physical reasons which he has indicated, begin to thaw
whenever the surface possesses a temperature not less than forty
degrees. For then warm currents would descend, and cold ones
rise. Ice therefore, saving to a certain extent within the polar
regions, cannot exist at the bottom of the ocean.

Besides, granting the influence of the sun's rays on the earth
to be limited, and that the warmth they communicate does not
reach below a given line in the interior, is there no internal heat
which, acting upwards, may temper the waters of the sea ? Are
there no subterranean fires exerting such an effect j — no maga-
zines of heat lodged in the bowels of the earth, and operating
by an agency powerful and permanent ? Look to the many vol-
canoes throughout the globe, and the showers and rivers of fire
which they disgorge, and let them furnish a reply. Perhaps I
dwell too long upon this topic ; but, I confess, setting aside every
philosophic consideration, I have another interest in the matter.
It is not pleasant to have one's early notions crossed by tliis

SEA MUSINGS. 1 I

chilling doctrine of an icy substratum to the waters of old ocean ;
to be taught that the ' caves,' which the muse of Gray has con-
structed beneath the briny floods, have no real locality ; and that
those other beautiful poetic creations, — the Mermaid's cells, the
Triton's halls, and the Sea Nymphs' coral bowers are built not
in the green, grassy hyaline, but among excavations from
layers of everlasting ice. If such be their homes, farewell ye
visions of fancy !

But a soberer subject of contemplation forces itself upon my
mind. In pursuing our voyage, over how many wrecks deep
buried beneath the waves may we unconsciously sail ! Here and
there are engulfed the remains of precious cargoes, — tributes
from the wealth of richest climes. The storms which agitate
the surface of the deep cannot reach the tranquil floods which
embosom them. The land-wrecker comes not nigh to glut his
cupidity with those spoils. Their riches shall never be uncov-
ered to pamper the luxury or satiate the avarice of man.

Nor does reflection pause here. Deep down in these floods,
— were but their watery sepulchres disclosed, — how numerous
the human forms might we find, — forms, once active and robust,
of those who in the midst of health, and strength, and usefulness,
of the love of life and susceptibility to its enjoyment, sunk into
the dark and yawning abyss. They left kindred and country
high in hope, fearless of evil, confident of a safe return, of the
sweets once more of kindly greetings and the renewal of inter-
course with the friends and relatives they bade an adieu to.
But the decree had gone forth — the voyage of life was sooner
to conclude ; and those eyes, which at parting sparkled with
love and hope, were destined never more to look upon country,
on friends or the domestic abode. Under these floods lie some
whom once I knew. Alas, what were their sensations at the
moment of being finally whelmed ! How did the thought of
home and its loved inmates, — that home and those inmates no
more to be beheld, — rush with anguish to their hearts ! How
cruel, perhaps, they deemed their lot ! Bitterly they may have
deplored that love of gain or zest for novelty which had

12 VOYAGE TO THE STRAITS.

impelled them to forego the calmer pleasures and pursuits where-
in they were nurtured, and to encounter the perils ever incident
to exposure on the mighty waters. The wave which, in the midst
of their poignant reflections, swept them forever away from life
and its consciousness, was sent in mercy to abridge the pangs of
their breasts. They ' sleep on now and take their rest ; ' and let
me hope that beyond the waves of a changeful world their
spirits have reached an haven on those peaceful and happy shores
where sorrow, and fear, and death can no more come. ^

Dec. 12, Ten P. M. By our reckoning we were up last
evening with the meridian of the most westerly of the Azores,
namely, the isles of Corvo and Flores ; but being considerably
to the southward, we did not see them. We had thus run
forty degrees of longitude, and somewhat more than five of
latitude, in thirteen days, making a distance of upwards of two
thousand miles English. Light and baffling winds having since
occurred, we have proceeded scarce a degree farther east. We
perceive an agreeable alteration in the climate. The two last
days have been beautiful ; and though, on this we have not
made our usual progress, the mild and pleasant weather which has
smiled upon us, has made sufficient amends. The air to-day
has had a vernal softness, breathing from isles which are visited
with perpetual spring. At eight, this morning, the mercury in
a thermometer suspended at my berth-head, stood at seventy
degrees. It is pleasing to find, too, the temperature of the waters
reduced, no less than five degrees, within three days. It is an
indication that we are disengaging ourselves from the influence
of the Gulf Stream, its course, from about this quarter, being
considerably deflected, and taking a more southerly direction.
The sun went down this evening with great beauty ; and after the
colors had partially faded with which its lingering light decked
the horizon, a star of exquisite lustre, — need I name that star ?
appeared above the drapery of clouds which skirted that portion
of the heavens. As twilight withdrew, the moon, near her full,
beamed forth from her mantle of silvery clouds, and the ocean,
eastward, is now brightened with the radiance which she sheds.

A COLLOaUY. 13

It is perfectly comfortable to walk the deck at this hour, without
an extra coat, and I have just descended from viewing the still
loveliness of the evening.

Such a day and evening might seemingly reconcile the most
fastidious or reluctant voyager, to the endurances of a sea-
passage. But this is not exactly the effect upon myself. I do
not feel sufficiently domesticated upon a watery element ; and
great as may be the beauties or sublimities of an ocean scene, a
ship's deck would not be the place I should select for the mere
purpose of enjoying them. I know not how I may intelligibly
explain this to one, who, judging from the frequency of Adantic
voyages, the skill with which our ships are navigated, the rarity
of serious accidents, and the provision made for the comfort
of passengers, may imagine a trip like the present, reasonably
secure and agreeable. But come, some one of you whom I love ;

come, bonnie , from your distant home, and walk with

me above, and look abroad on the scene here displayed. See
the vessel gliding gently along the waters, and making her liquid
path through waves silvered and glittering with the moon's beams.
Is that a pleasant spectacle ? But would you not enjoy it with
more perfect tranquillity were your pretty feet to press the solid
land than this undulating deck ? Is it delightful to mark the
waves as they peacefully divide, nay, as they seem to rise and
kiss that prow which furrows a passage through them? —
* Treacherous waves,' would you not say; 'I distrust even
your present pacific mood, and know that your power, awful as
it is, is only in a state of temporary repose ! ' — Do you love
these breezes, which play and wanton among your ringlets, and
fan the roses which freshen upon your cheeks ? How know
you but that these soft winds may not swell this night into furi-
ous gales, and wreck and whelm the bark which bears you ?
You gaze on the beauty of yonder clouds, and note them
awhile enshrining, as in a radiant car, the Queen of night, and
anon, seemingly pausing, as she steps forth into the clear blue
firmament, walking in her brightness. Those clouds can array
themselves in blackness, and at the bidding of the Ruler of the

1 4 VOYAGE TO THE STRAITS.

Storm, would suddenly enwrap the fair orb you contemplate,
and sweep fearfully over the darkened face of the heavens,
' making night hideous.' Still is the present scene, think you,
intrinsically sublime ? Look around you, survey the whole, and
stretch your eye into the dark background of trackless waters.
Is there not a solemnity in their shades ? Mark the extent, so
seemingly boundless ; — reflect on the depth confessedly fathom-
less, of these now serene floods. Contemplate your own
solitariness, — cut off, for a season, from the world of mankind,
and from every tie which binds you to social life, beyond the
little company within the frail vessel in which you sail. Say
then, sublime if your impressions be, are they not to a certain
degree painful ? Do they not in part oppress you ? — You
imagine perchance, that the cheering light of day might dispel
your gathering gloom. Would you behold then the sun, rising
from this world of waters, and beaming forth from under a
glorious canopy of clouds ? But list ; — should you not prefer
to look upon it, as often you have done, from the iron-bound
margin, the everlasting rocky wall of your own native strand, —
that adamantine barricade, which sets bars and doors to the
surges of the sea ; — would you not, I repeat, rather gaze thence,
upon the glories of the morning sun, as it comes up from the
bosom of the deep, than with the unsolid and rolling foothold
you would alone have here? And from the quiet of that
retreat, where now you are, not in fancy as here, but with a
personal presence, can you not, as you view the dawning splen-
dors of that magnificent luminary, think with a deeper, because
a more composed reverence, on the power and adorable
excellence of that Being, who formed it ? And can you not,
afFectingly conceive, of the awful displays of the Creator's might
upon the ocean's wastes, when He makes the clouds his chariot,
and ' His pavilion is dark waters and thick clouds of the sky ?'
Tempt not then these sleeping waves, but rejoice in an asylum
on a stabler element.

But stay ; I must not overlook another class of persons who
doubtless would have no sympathy with the feelings 1 have

DISCOMFORTS AT SEA. 15

attempted to portray, in whose eyes they might seem as weak-
nesses, and in whose bosoms, neither a sentiment of awe, nor
chastened fear in contemplating the mighty deep, could find a
place. Well then, my friend, you would fancy a sea-voyage, —
nothing better to your taste ? Is it so, good sir ? Allons ; and
enjoy the comforts of your new situation. As you have no
fears of the effects of squalls and storms, I shall say nothing in
your ear of the inconveniences, much less the possible mishaps,
arising in those quarters. To proceed then ; — all is quiet
without, we will suppose. You go upon deck, be it morning
or noon-day, and if, but the first edge of the novelty of obser-
vation be worn off, an inveterate listlessness you will feel.
Much the same dull monotonous existence you must lead, from
day to day ; and much the same insipid uniformity of avocations
you will mark in others about you. The men, you will find,
for the most part, engaged in a stated routine of duty ; and,
were it otherwise, what intellectual communion could you hold
with such ? But your friend is with you : — Sickness, or that
inevitable squeamishness incident to a first voyage, has tamed
his mood, and yours too, my friend, give me leave to suspect.
Food can excite little relish ; sleep will often fly from your
eyelids, even when most earnestly you woo it ; and utterly un-
fitted, confess sir, do you not find yourself, to all serious mental
occupation ? Would you exercise ? You then, by experience
learn, that you are truly imprisoned, and destitute, of so much
as tlie liberty of the yard. Some twenty paces or less, from the
tiller rope to the windlass, form your entire promenade. You
are surrounded too, with pigs and with poultry, who are equally
with yourself, privileged to stray upon the decks, else, if cooped
up, they might sicken and die. You are assailed also with a
compound of heterogeneous scents, not the most grateful to a
slippery appetite. You endure all this, I hope, with philosophic
fortitude. But no ; I perceive that you give in. You hie back
to the cabin, perhaps to immure yourself in your state-room ; —
and what there ? Would you write ? The ship rolls. Would
you read ? Your head aches.

16 VOYAGE TO THE STRAITS.

Dec. 14. — Since my last date, we have had a continuance
of mild vernal weather. The thermometer shaded, on deck,
has ranged as high as seventy degrees ; and, in place of furs and
flannels, top-coats, woollen gloves, and moccasins, with which
I emharked duly provided, (the very thought, as well as sight
of which, now, almost makes me perspire,) a portion of light
apparel has become quite acceptable. As an offset to the
pleasure of this, we have been becalmed ; or the little air which
has stirred, has breezed against us. The surface of the water
wears a glassy smoothness, and the ocean, on every hand,
stretches into a boundless plane.

Early, the last evening, a passing cloud sprinkled a few drops,
and as it drifted by, and finally hung in the west, the moon
painted a bow upon it. It was quite distinctly formed, and
though pale, was beautiful. It was the first lunar bow which I
recollect to have seen. ^

The flying fish still visit us. For want of better variety, I
am disposed to make the most of these sportive creatures. I
have been surprised at the length of time during which they can
keep upon the wing. Some of them have flown, or more
properly skimmed, at least one hundred and fifty yards, ere
dipping beneath the wave, to prepare for a fresh sp#iip^-They
bear the same relation to the finny tribes, that the flying squirrel
holds to the quadruped. It is not always that their flight indi-
cates a very sportive mood in the little creatures themselves.
They have a most cruel persecutor in the dolphin. It is easy
to determine when they are flying from their foe, by the fre-
quency, and seeming desperateness of their leaps ; and if so
remote an allusion may be pardoned, not Atys, hasting from the
lions of Cybele, was doomed to a surer fate, than that which
awaits one of these poor innocents, from its inexorable pursuer.
With an eye and a resolution, from which nothing can divert,
the fleet dolphin follows in its track. He marks the spot of its
probable descent, and darts thither with jaws gaping to devour.
If the fugitive escapes for a few courses, it is only to obtain a
reprieve of its doom ; and the race terminates, as might be

NAUTICAL ANECDOTE. 17

anticipated from such fearful odds, in its becoming a prey to
its remorseless enemy.

In my idle hours, — and in good sooth they are not a few, —
I have been considerably entertained with some of the Captain's
narratives. One of them is given as a specimen. — Inquiring
of him a morning or two ago, how small a vessel he had known
to navigate the ocean, on a voyage of much extent and expo-
sure ^ He informed me, that being at Hayti, a few years
since, a smack arrived there, of the chebacco boat class, from
one of our Eastern ports. Her rate was but fifteen tons, and
she was freighted miscellaneously, as was natural, coming from
the Land of Notions, being stuffed to the brim with pork, lard,
cheese, butter, flour, fish, apples, and pumpkins. She had
performed a voyage of seventeen hundred miles. Her company
consisted of a master, mate, one hand, and a boy. But the
captain, after his arrival in Hayti, did not disguise his convictions,
that he had undertaken too much. He confessed, that on
stretching out into the blue main, and encountering the heavy
swell, as ever and anon a wave would break over his frail
shallop, his courage quailed 5 and were it not for the rare cool-
ness of his coadjutors, especially the single tar, — an old
fisherman, who knew not what fear was, — he had despaired
of ever bringing his vessel into port. Her waist was almost
constantly under water, and even the deck aft was frequently
washed by a wave. The fisherman however, mounted his
huge boots, and with the aid of ' good New England,' stood
manfully at the helm, occasionally relieved by the mate, who,
if he did not step into his shoes, always took possession, during
his tick, of what served him a much better turn, — the standing
jack-boots. Meanwhile, it was the chief office of the captain
to keep watch forward, which it seems he did, with no little
personal jeopardy, for he clung like a leech to the foremast.
Happily he preserved the respect due to his station, by the
reverence which his companions had of his faculty of taking
the sun ; and daily, at meridian, he would display his quadrant,
and while half drowned, and clinging for his life to his wonted
3

18 VOYAGE TO THE STRAITS.

hold, would peep through the reflectors, and then report to his
comrades, or perhaps give a satisfactory guess, what progress
they had made within the last day's run. — The issue of the
homeward voyage was not told.

Dec. 18. — On the morning of the 16th, our helmsman
called out ' Land ! ' To one at sea, such a sound may be
presumed to be always agreeable ; and on the present occasion
it dropped even from the rough voice of a sailor, like music
upon my ear. The land proved to be Fayal, but at a great
distance ahead, probably twentyfive or thirty miles. Two or
three hours after, other land was discovered, still farther east,
which from its position we knew to be Pico. Its lofty peak
was shrouded in thick mists. We bore down towards these
islands with a good breeze, but we found a strong current
making against us. The log marked seven knots per hour ;
but from this, we had to throw out full two and an half, reduc-
ing the hourly distance actually gained, to four and a half
nautical miles. We did not pass Pico till ten o'clock in the
evening. The next forenoon we made St Michaels, and were
abreast of it at nightfall. It was to be seen very plainly to-
day, till about eleven, A. M. when it was enfolded in gathering
clouds and disappeared.

There is something exhilarating in the sight of land, though
in this passing way. It wears to the voyager a friendly look,
and seems to reconnect him once more with earth. I had
a strong wish to set foot upon these islands, and was almost
tempted to regret that they were not my destination.

We did not sail near enough to observe very clearly, their
beauties. Yet there was much that was picturesque in their
aspect. Their sombre forms exhibited peculiarly broken and
rugged outlines, from most of the positions whence we viewed
them. The whole sufficiently denoted the volcanic power,
which, if not the mighty agent in their production, has never-
theless wrought upon them some of its grandest operations.
St Michaels, when bearing southwest from us, resembled a
truncated cone — its slopes very rough, and the rim of its broad

THE AZORES. 19

summit jagged with round or pointed prominences. Previously,
we had crossed near the site of the extraordinary volcanic
eruption which burst from the sea, so late as the year 1811.
Successive streams of fire are reported to have then shot up from
the deep, and the flames to have risen into the air like a multi-
tude of sky-rockets, with the usual accompaniments of smoke,
ashes, and pumice. Eruptions, still more powerful, have
occurred in the neighboring waters, followed by the appearance
of solid volcanic rocks and islets. ^ Along the sides of St
Michael, as also of Fayal, we perceived innumerable dark
streaks, and amid the masses of black, alternate patches of a
lighter ground, intermingled. The former were obviously fields
of lava, or volcanic scoriae, piled in ridges ; and the latter I
took for cultivated spots, whence the harvest has been recently
gathered. These islands, besides the wines and fruits they
yield, particularly oranges, furnish annually large supplies of
wheat and barley which are shipped to Portugal. It is a little
curious that most of the wine, which passes under the name of
Fayal, is produced on the adjacent isle of Pico, its lofty sides
being peculiarly favorable to the culture of the grape ; but
want of a suitable haven for large vessels, occasions its wines
to be conveyed to the former, and be thence exported. The
annual quantity which Pico yields, is computed at present,
to fall not short of six thousand pipes.

The existence of the Azores in these spots which they
occupy, so centrally fixed in the ocean, — Corvo being almost
literally a middle point in the North Atlantic, — is truly won-
derful. Whatever be the absurdity of the Huttonian theory,
when applied in its greatest latitude, that the entire crust of
the earth has been propelled upward from the deep, by sub-
terraneous fires, it would seem, at least, to a casual observer^
that to such a cause, these insulated masses owe their origin.
If so, how unutterably vast and awful that instrumental power,
displayed in the formation of such mountain isles ! But whence
do they date ? Anterior, or subsequent to the flood ? Are the
fires which were employed, now quenched ? Or do they remain.

20 VOYAGE TO THE STRAITS.

only partially smothered, awaiting an appointed period, again to
rush forth, and to despoil or destroy the fair creations which
anciently they were commissioned to produce ? These are
topics of inexplicable speculation, it is allowed ; yet they natu-
rally present themselves to the mind, in the survey of these
extraordinary islands ; and new food for wonder is offered by
the fact, that not only this cluster, but those other groups farther
south in the Atlantic — Madeira, the Canaries, and Cape Verd
isles — are all volcanic. ^

It is said that no soundings are obtained among these islands,
except very near their shores. So far as the thermometer can
be depended on in evidence, it rather went to confirm the
remark ; for though I tried the water repeatedly, I perceived a
depression of temperature only of one degree, when abreast of
Pico, and two, near St Michael's. If the ocean bed were un-
covered, of what stupendous altitude would these isles appear, —
especially when it is considered that Pico, the Teneriffe of this
group, is already so elevated above the sea, that its peak is
constantly whitened with snows. "^

Dec. 30. — For ten days, we have experienced boisterous
weather, with scarce a moment's intermission. There was one
long gale, which for a week, blew directly against us, and so
violently, that sometimes we were glad to lay to, with every
sail furled. There were torrents of rain, sometimes hail, not
without the occasional accompaniments of thunder and lightning*
Nothing could exceed the dread magnificence of the sea and
heavens, in the night of the 27th. We were glad to have light
of some sort, as we were placed in the direct highway of
vessels bound from the Straits to America, and had descried a
sail or two ahead of us at sunset, on the evening previous. The
night itself was perfectly black. Not an object could be seen
a yard or an inch in advance. In these circumstances, about
midnight, it began to lighten. The first red flash which darted
through the murky gloom opened up with sublime effect the
surface of the tumultuous waters. Another and another corrus-
cation followed, and the eye embraced each quarter of the

APPROACH TO LAND. 21

horizon. No ship was seen. All around, nothing could be
discerned but foaming, toppling hills. The thunders which
successively broke completed the sublimity of the scene and
hour. The emotions inspired were enough to compensate for
many inconveniences and a measure of danger. ^

Jan. 2, 1827. — Wafted at length by propitious breezes, we
are rapidly drawing to our desired haven. The three past days
have been delightful, and evenings of tranquil beauty have
closed upon each of them. The moon, too, has begun to light
our track, and her silver crescent once more gleams from the
firmament, — an omen for good.

Jan. 3. JVear midnight. — During the day, our course was
exhilarating, — every sail to the studding canvass gaily spread, —
and the hope was entertained that the breeze continuing steady
would bring our reckoning up by tomorrow noon, and afford us
a leisurely look-out for the land. But we have reason to ap-
prehend, that the latter is already closer than could be prudently
wished. When the sun went down, the wind began to press in
heavy blasts. Our sails were successively taken in as the
gusts increased, till at length naked, with only close-reefed top-
sails, the ship is driven with a gale at the rate of ten miles an
hour. The bad weather experienced after our leaving the
Western Isles, added to uncertain drifts, has probably made our
calculations of distance somewhat inaccurate. An imperfect
observation obtained at noon the day past, did not permit us
to ascertain our latitude exactly. The narrowness of the Straits
would make an error in this respect very serious, if we should
be near them ; and the in-setting current must be accelerating
our progress. The moon has gone down, the night is very
dark, and be the event what it may, onward we drive. The
opinion of the officers is, that we are forty miles past Cape
St Vincent, and that by morning break. Cape Roche, on the
Spanish shore, will be about six leagues distant.

Jan. 4, Ten A.M. — The storm continued through the night.
At three o'clock, still driving in dismal darkness, uncertain
whether land was one league or a score of leagues before us.

22 VOYAGE TO THE STKAITS.

it was determined to sound. The ship was hove to, and as the
lead dropped and plashed through the waves, it was a moment
of anxious suspense. No bottom was found at a hundred fath-
oms depth. Afterwards, at intervals the line was tried again,
but with no other result. The dawn broke heavily. The
second officer coming down, reported that a black mass of
something was ahead, but whether a denser cloud or the coast,
remained for opening morn to determine. At length land it
proved, and Land was eagerly cried,

E'en from the topmast head where posted long.
The look-out sailor clung, and with keen eye
Read the dim characters of air-veiled shores.

The coast was scarcely a league in advance. An hour ear-
lier, the discovery not improbably would have been in vain, and
a wreck upon the strand first told of its proximity.

Bearing away, we shaped a more southerly course. At
eight, I went upon deck, and saw stretching upon our left
broken ridges of coast ; and amid these a bold bluff lifting its
frov/ning brow over the roaring waves. This was Cape Tra-
falgar. We were sailing over the memorable scene of Nelson's
last and proudest triumph, and were riding upon the billows,
which, in the hour of his expiring achievements, were dyed with
human blood.

Looking along the shore, the first object noticed was a
wind-mill briskly at work, verifying the old adage, ' that it is an
ill wind which blows no good.' Not long after, two Martello
towers were observed, on separate bold elevations of land, and
as we proceeded, similar erections were not unfrequent. The
general impression of the scene was that of dreariness and
solitude. About nine o'clock the first house was distinguished,
a square, unshaded tenement, bulk close to the beach, in an
uninviting situation. As we advanced, a village was next seen
crowning a hill a mile or two back from the sea, compactly
set, — its church tower very conspicuous, the light material of
which, as well as of the surrounding buildings, gave to the
whole, at that distance, rather an agreeable appearance. Our

SPANISH AND MOORISH COASTS. 23

chart determines this to be St Matthews. A beautiful rainbow
was just then spanning an arch of the heavens over it, one ex-
tremity of which seemed to rest on tlie little town. The coast
in this quarter for several leagues was formed chiefly of banks
of yellowish sand, which were high and precipitous ; the soil
within appeared fainlly tinged with herbage, but all open and
bare of trees. We were then standing in close with the shore, —
all hands busily employed in bending the cables and arranging
the anchors. Birds were wheeling sportively over the green
and boisterous waves ; and the sun now and then breaking forth
through a rifted cloud,

Brighten'd the storm it could not calm.

As we coasted at length within a mile of the shore, we were
able to survey its features more distinctly. The sandy bluffs
were succeeded by a range of rocky hills rising back upon the
interior, whose sides presented a wavy appearance, the broad
and deep hollows of which declined uniformly towards the wa-
ter. Watch-towers were still frequent, memorials of times and
events crowded far back on the page of history. They occu-
pied every favorable projection of the coast. Their forms were
sometimes square, but more generally circular and tapering.
They had a crumbling look, and are probably useless unless they
may give shelter to some fishermen whose boats we occasion-
ally saw^ moored near them. Several ruined fortresses appa-
rently of Saracenic construction, were also beheld at intervals as
we bore up towards the Straits. — Thus far of the Spanish shore;
but ere this a gratifying spectacle was offered in another quarter.

Some huge volumes of clouds rolling apart on our right dis-
closed the first features of the opposite continent. The lofty and
crag-bound coast of Africa, sable as her sons, was seen stretch-
ing from Cape Spartel far to the south, till mingling and lost in
the deeper shades of distant mists. As the vision became more
distinct, that shore appeared in bolder relief, somewhat more
elevated than its confronting sister continent, and altogether it
wore to the eye a character of impressive but gloomy grandeur.

24 VOYAGE TO THE STRAITS.

The scene at this time possessed great sublimity. Immense
masses of vapor were constantly mustering in the west, and
trailing their blackness after us. The wind at intervals would
lull as these deluged us with rain, and then rush anew with wild
tempestuousness. At no great distances were several ships,
driven like ourselves with almost naked rigging before the storm
— now pressed down upon their sides while the sheeted foam
swept over their prows ; now riding with giddy swiftness on the
topmost waves, and anon lost sight of, as though literally sunk,
when some deeper cloud shut down between them and us. The
actual spectacle and a crowd of reflections, — a continent ap-
proximating on either hand ; before me and soon to be unveiled,
those Pillars of renown, — the colossal boundaries of the Western
Deep, and sentinels as of yore to the pass of another majestic
sea, — that sea thence lengthening its expanse till washing
shores once famed as the seats of all-conquering monarchies,- —
these together operated powerfully to excite and impress my mind^

Cabreta, on the Spanish shore, was the next point approached,
and this we have just left. On it is a light-house, and adjacent,
the small fort of Canaro. The royal colors were spread from
the latter as we passed, a salutation which we returned by dis-
playing the republican ' star-spangled banner.' Here was afford-
ed the first sample of the inhabitants of this legitimate soil, and
these in the persons of several of its mercenary defenders, —
some soldiers being observed cowering from the keen blasts
under the sheltered side of a block-house. They were clad in
coats of light grey, with hats of an uncouth shape, — their white
belts crossing in front in the antiquated style. Their firelocks
were stacked beside them. On the whole their appearance had
litde in it of the martial.

Evening. Anchored in Gibraltar Bay. At length we
are here, and it remains that I look back and trace the few sub-
sequent particulars of the voyage. The eye is wont to glance
with eager interest over the first features of a country ; and
what under common circumstances would be regarded with
indifference, inspires other feelings in a new observer. The

LANDSCAPES. 26

minutiae which caught attention as we rapidly coasted along the
Spanish shore were not peculiarly striking. It was the general
cast of dreary grandeur both of that and the opposite territory of
Morocco, increasing as we advanced, that awakened chief inte-
rest. My glass was busily employed for the better survey of
passing objects. On the nearer shore, huts and cottages, all
built of light colored stone, and a few better tenements were
seen thinly scattered. The peasantry were occupied, some
about their homesteads in trimming their rudely fenced gardens,
others with the plough abroad in their fields. Here, a few bul-
locks were cropping the stinted herbage ; there in a snug hollow,
the smoke of the burning stubble of the last year's harvest was
sending up its murky wreaths. On the strand, in one place, a
group of men might be seen securing their boats, or mending
their fishing gear ; in another, some few idle ones, were shel-
tered beneath a rock or jutting sandbank watching the waves as
they lashed the shore, and perchance rejoicing that they in their
barks were not encountering the fierceness of the storm : further
on, along the margin of an inlet, a company of children were
pursuing their sports, occasionally pausing to mark the course and
toiling of our ship which seemed to add to their amusement, and
then resuming their gambols, blithe as the flapping curlew.
The hills and fields preserved much the same uniformity, —
quite uninclosed, — saving about a tenement a small patch or
two were sometimes intersected by hedges of the scraggy rock-
pear. Portions of the lower and more sheltered slopes were
arable and under tillage, but the wild furze or other underwood,
which closed around, and the bare rocky precipices which
frowned above, could be contemplated with no great pleasure.
In short, there was much wanting in the scenes generally which
flitted by, to communicate that impression of comfort, which is
the characteristic of an American landscape.

An exception on the score of prettiness, might be made in
favor of the Hermitage of St Catherine near TarifFa, the neigh-
borhood of which exhibited a pleasing image of quiet, rural neat-
ness. Another spot caught my attention from some not unwel-
4

VOYAGH TO THE STRAITS.

come remembrances and associations which it called up, — and
these, by its Scottish character. The scene was a natural recess
between high and rugged lands approaching to mountains.
They divided more broadly and with less abruptness than most
which I observed. There were three or four houses inter-
spersed over this space, and peering from under plantations of
greenwood. A brook tumbled from a neighboring precipice,
and meandered near the little hamlet, tinging with fresh verdure
the soil which it irrigated. It next glided coyly away, along a
dusky dell, which a Scot might call a glen ; after which, it re-
appeared to sparkle a moment in the fitful sunbeams, and then
leap and be lost among the ocean floods. It is more difficult
to say wherein the appearance of the spot was peculiarly Cale-
donian, as that so it was ; the brokenness of the back ground
with its furzy garb resembling heath, — the unfenced soil, —the
repose and freshness of the green nook, so isolated, ■ — the head-
long brook, with some nameless features less strongly imprint-
ed,— these all made up the cast of the scene.

Meanwhile, the opposite shore came in for its share of atten-
tion. After opening the bay of Tangiers, a clearer view was
had of its circling districts. These, and the swelling lands be-
yond, extending towards Ceuta, gave evidence of a better
peopled country than the portion already glanced at of the vain-
glorious Spaniard. Houses and other erections, dappled many
parts of their long sweeping surfaces ; and whatever allowance
be made for distance, certainly as thence seen, the heritage of
the Moor bore the palm of superior pleasantness. The famed
Abyla was at length revealed, towering in sombre state, the very
mists which still partly veiled his brow, giving heightened sub-
limity to his hoary pride. Nor was it long ere the twin-mount
began to be uncovered, till then land-locked by a bold promon-
tory forming the western limit of Gibraltar Bay. Point Europa
greeted us first, and gradually extended its front into the sea as
we continued to double the intercepting Cape. Soon the Old
mole was discovered ; next the shipping clustered about the
New ; then the grim batteries at the water's edge ; and above

APPEARANCE OF GIBRALTAR. 27

these, Gibraltar, with its small crowded edifices, looking like
card-houses pasted to the naked rock, and so slight, as though
one swoop of the storm could scatter them upon the waves. To
the left of the town we beheld a crumbling fortress, remnant of
Moorish power, — on the south, a venerable wall climbing the
savage steep till stopped by an impassable elevation, — higher
yet, crag upon crag, — here, pierced with lines of embrasures,
whose unsleeping eyelids told of the tremendous artillery stored
within — there, poised as upon air, and seemingly ready by their
own weight to fall and crush each human work beneath, —
these too, still rising to giddier heights, till they led the eye up to
the proud old summit of Mount Calpe, — such faintly sketched,
were the more striking objects which riveted the gaze when the
harbor was approached, which opened its bosom to receive us.

And soon it was entered. Reaching a station abreast of the
inner mole, our anchor was dropped ; the massy chain followed
with its grating, rumbling sound ; the vessel ' brought up,' and
the voyage was done. The laws of quarantine not permitting
my landing, the usual resource left has been employed in exam-
ining more leisurely the features of surrounding objects. On
one side, is the town of Gibraltar, occupying the eastern shore
of the bay; on the opposite, but further removed, is Algeziras,
with its extensive but half dismantled castle. North of us, St
Roque is seen, prettily crowning a small hill a league or more
back from the head of the harbor. It is there that the governor
of the garrison is permitted to have an occasional residence, un-
der the sanction of the Spanish authorities. He is to be felicitated
on this, for the town under his military command, seems misera-
bly cramped for space. Just out of the land-port, leading from
the walls to the Neutral ground, a causeway begins, which tra-
verses the sandy isthmus to a village of considerable size built
of wood. It next continues through a line of military embank-
ments and other fortifications, which cross the neck north and
south, and mark where the dominion of Old Spain begins. The
path then winds down to the shore, the curve of which forms
the only route further on, quite round to Algeziras, The entire

28 VOYAGE TO THE STRAITS.

extent, both of this highway and a branch which strikes into the
interior, winding up the picturesque height of St Roque, is fre-
quented by pedestrians of all ages, — men, women and child-
ren, — also, mules and horses, drays and other vehicles. In
the moving groups, that universal drudge of the Old World, the
poor, patient donkey, is always to be seen, laden, (besides his
panniers) with burdens sometimes surpassing the creature's own
bulk. Yet onward he toils, urged by the impatient attendant,
who returning from the Rock, is perhaps, counting the rials
which the day's traffic has yielded ; and whose sole thought at
night for his faithful beast, will be to turn him adrift, in order to
pick the litde herbage or coarse briars which the inclemency of
the season may have spared around his abode.

Jan. 5. — In the forenoon, we again weighed our anchor and
stood in nearer to the shore. A boat afterwards put off and
came along-side, bearing the health Inspector. It was manned
by six swarthy oarsmen, who were neatly dressed in blue round
jackets and red vests, with glazed hats of a smart set, in a circu-
lar cipher on the front of which, the letters G. R. were conspic-
uous. The officer was gentlemanly and treated us well. He
gave us reason to hope that there would be no obstacles to our
speedily escaping the restraints of quarantine.

Inquiring the news, we learned that the Portuguese Pro-
visional Government had claimed the aid of England in support
of the new constitution given by Pedro, which was opposed or
at least menaced on the part of Spain ; and that five thousand
troops had been ordered forthwith to proceed to Oporto and
Lisbon. To furnish these, a contingent was immediately to
embark from this garrison.

Another light wherry visited us, despatched by the vessel's
consignee, which brought us papers, and more substantial enter-
tainment in a variety of fruits, vegetables and wines. The
remainder of the day was occupied as circumstances would
admit — passed somewhat listlessly, and yet not without general
interest. A busy going to and fro has kept up along the routes
described in my notes of yesterday ; and both harbor and beach

AN F/^ENING ON BOARD.

have presented scenes of animation. Boats bearing passengers
of botii sexes were frequently shooting across the bay, many
of them belonging to Algeziras, and the peculiarities of phy-
siognomy and costume, all so strongly Spanish, did not escape
notice. Of the passing groups on the land side, one is offered
as a specimen.

Looking through a glass, (of such clearness as suggested the
fancy of the humorist who reported that his brought persons so
near, that besides seeing them, he had the further advantage of
hearing them speak,) I observed early in the bright but chilly
morning, a company of three lively and dark-eyed Andalusian
lasses mounted on mules, clad in scarlet cloaks, light furs and
streaming veils, and each attended by a side runner armed with
a long staff for goading the beasts, which tripped onward with
their fair burdens. The animals were quaintly, but showily
caparisoned, and to complete the curious group a brace of large
white dogs bounded by their side. They were wending along
the sandy track that still sparkled with a light hoar-frost, —
haply to spend a day of amusement in the gay garrison.

The evening upon the bay, — (it is now nine P. M.) — has
worn a cheerful aspect. Lights gleam about the shores, and
spangle with innumerable bright dots the town of Gibraltar, the
Neutral suburb, and the two or three Spanish villages discernible
without the lines. The busy hum of the garrison is done ; and
above, all is equally hushed where its most appalling engines of
death lie embosomed. Silence on the bay is not unwelcomely
disturbed when the bells of neighboring ships toll the half hour ;
and not long since, this stillness was far more pleasingly broken
when from the town the heavy tongues of the cathedral chime
were heard to strike the affecting Los Animos. The sounds
stole along the waters in softened harmony, and fell upon the
ear in tones so plaintive and so solemn, that they touched within
me a cord of sympathy with the devout affections in the Catholic
bosom, which were warned by the mournful music of those sweet
bells to breathe an aspiration for the peace of Departed Souls. ^

CHAPTER II

GIBRALTAR.

Interview with the Health Physician. — Release from Quarantine. — Impres-
sions on Landing. — Appearance of the Mole and Streets. — Sunday ; Re-
ligious Services in the Cathedral and Government Church. — Comments. —
Spanish Ladies. — Costumes. — Jews. — Restraints of the Inhabitants gen-
erally. — Survey of the Fortifications. — Reflections, — Ascent to the South
Pinnacle. — Grandeur of the Prospect. — St Michael's Cave. — Embarkation
of Troops for Portugal. — Military Pomp. — Strength of Gibraltar. — Cost-
liness of its Possession. — A Query on its Utility.

Commercial Sq,uare, King's Arms : January Sih. — Mj
confinement on shipboard, which was becoming at length
sufficiently irksome, terminated on the afternoon of the 6th
instant. The vessel was still detained in quarantine on the
plea that six cases of silk were on board, which the Health
Office undertook to presume might be the product" of the
looms of Turkey. They were from Canton, and had been
sent on board the morning of our leaving America, by a merchant
who wished to avail himself of the privilege of drawback. —
When the discovery was made, the whole cargo was subjected
to the suspicion or rather the treatment as though it nursed the
germs of a plague. A brief notice of the procedure in such
cases may not be amiss.

In a part of the harbor a King's vessel is anchored, having the
royal colors flying. At a certain hour each day, the health
Physician, as examiner, goes on board, and a signal flag is dis-
played. Boats from the ships in quarantine then put off to it
for the purpose of communication, but are not suffered to
approach within a certain distance. In one of the visits of our
captain I accompanied him at his desire to add my affirmation

HEALTH PHYSICIAN. 31

to his statements. On coming up with the floating tribunal, a
dapper looking doctor was seen reclining in a comfortable arm-
chair placed on the quarter-deck. A white kid glove was
tightly drawn over the left hand. Its counterpart dangled from
the right, which seemed purposely left bare to display the spark-
ling of a gemmed ring. We drew up to the leeward that we
might not come ' between the wind and his nobility.' Just
deigning to cast a glance upon us through an eye-glass which
was suspended from his neck, the lordly ^sculapian began : —
' You have silks on board, Mr Captain ?'

* 1 have, sir, a few small cases.'

' What evidence can you offer that they are not of Turkish
febric ?'

' My oath, sir.'

* Your oath can but state your personal convictions. They
may err. Have you no other testimony V

' The declarations of this gentleman respecting the character
of the house from which the silks were received, and its long
established trade with the East Indies: and next, the plain
marks on the cases themselves, showing that they are of
Chinese production.'

'The declarations of your friend cannot be supposed to
cover every interrogatory, and marks are often deceptive. I
perceive, Mr Captain, there are difficulties in this business. My
situation is one of great responsibility as His Majesty's health
physician in this important port. In the present matter there is
much room for distrust. Let me release your cargo, and a
pestilence may go through the garrison. The circumstances
must be maturely weighed. Meanwhile, you will remain in
quarantine.'

* But when shall we take pratique^ ^
' I cannot tell.'

Such was the dialogue which occupied the interview with this
important personage. There was something more offensive
conveyed by his mannerism than even this description exhibits.

3?v VOYAGE TO THE STRAITS.

It was the superciliousness, combined with the rudeness, so
common in a deputy of John Bull. The former characteristic
is more usually met with in the underlings of government, than
among those in elevated stations of trust, and it consequently is
felt as more intolerable. It distinguishes, too, these minor
satellites of power more generally, when found in distant de-
pendencies of the crown, than those invested with commissions
at home, as I have elsewhere had opportunity to witness.
Wherever displayed, the feeling is no less unwise and
contemptible, than indecorous and unaccommodating.

Being impatient of captivity on such frivolous grounds, a
representation was made of my situation to another and higher
quarter, through the assistance of friends whose kind offices my
letters introductory had bespoken, and on Saturday the Gth, as
already mentioned, a permit was sent me to land. I was not
long in availing myself of it, and with a light heart entered a
boat which was to convey me to shore.

The noise of mingled voices and other discordant sounds,
which had fallen not feebly on the ear even at the distance
where our vessel rode, increased and deepened as we ap-
proached the place of debarkation. This was the Mole, and a
curious and bustling scene it presented on a nearer view. No
swarm from a bee-hive was ever busier. But in place of a
sombre assemblage of homogeneous beings, a motley crowd of
every variety of garb, and look, and occupation was beheld.
With difficulty our little boat was pushed among the multitude
of skiffs, launches and water-gigs which, with heavier craft,
lined deeply the margin of the Mole. As it was, on leaving
the yawl, I had to make my way literally over a bridge of
boats ere stepping foot on the solid main ; but at length, the
latter was reached, and I felt in touching it, that thrill of perfect
pleasure so rarely experienced in this chequered life, which
gives a luxury to bare existence. In fact, I know no higher
satisfaction in the sum of human enjoyments than that con-
densed into the moment when one finds himself fairly escaped

IMPRESSIONS ON LANDING. 33

from the confinement of ship-board and the Inconveniences of
a long and turbulent voyage, and when he can walk abroad free
as his own spirit, once more on firm earth. The novel scene of
a people of new, or varied pursuits and manners, costumes and
tongues, among whom he finds himself suddenly introduced,
adds to his exhilaration : and for a while he feels all the hap-
piness he can ask or desire. But the sensation is too tense
and exquisite to be of long duration. It soon relaxes and
drops from its tone. And it is well if the recollection of his
lone individuality among a throng of careless strangers, and the
fond i-egret in contemplating the weary distance which separates
him from those he knows and best loves, and whose images
busy memory will surely bring up, do not shortly infuse into his
bosom a train of dispiriting and gloomy reflections.

The Mole was piled with merchandise of all descriptions, and
buyers and venders, masters and clerks, sailors, porters, and
draymen, were promiscuously mixed. The solemn looks,
quaint dress, and sonorous language of the Spanish portion of
these- groups chiefly arrested my attention. They formed
generally the humbler and by far the most numerous class.
The strong, well formed horses which drew their ponderous
wagons, were samples of the once famed and still valuable An-
dalusian breed, and the trappings and housings of uncouth
and fantastic materials which literally loaded them, indicated
the pride with which their masters still regarded them. Hav-
ing refreshed the boat's crew at a neighboring stall which
displayed a tempting variety of oranges and other fruits, the
products of this delicious clime, 1 was glad to escape from the
scene of noise and jostling and hubbub, and to elbow my way
to the water-port. There I met the United States consul who
had politely rode down to greet me, and insure a pass, the right
of which is always rigidly questioned. Under the escort of a
guide, which this gentleman provided in addition to his other
civilities, I again set forth to thread the mazes of this straitened
town in quest of the ' traveller's home.'
5

34 GIBRALTAR.

Proceeding from the Mole by the only outlet, a long vaulted
passage through walls of solid masonry, crowded with pedestrians
vociferating in divers tongues, and carts whose rumbling wheels
completed the almost stunning noise, I entered a military
square which exhibited a moving scene scarcely less animated
than that I had just left. Soldiers were hurrying to and fro,
many of them busy in preparations for their speedy embarkation
for Portugal. The cipher on their equipments told their
respective regiments, — the royal artillery, the twentythird,
fortythird and sixtyfourth of the line. Among these brave
fellows I was glad to notice a few in the truly martial dress of
the Scotch highlanders, with their plaid kilts, tartan hose and
proud bonnets and plumes. From this quarter my guide con-
ducted me into the heart of the town through streets which
elsewhere would be termed lanes and alleys ; and these were all
filled with passing multitudes, men, women and children, sailors
and military, horses and carts, dogs, goats and asses. At length
we entered Church-street, the main thoroughfare through the
town, and which in width and other comforts may rival, but not
surpass old Ann-street in Boston. Fronting on this and form-
ing a corner of a small open space, called the Commercial
Square, stands the King's Arms Hotel, a house of respectable
pretensions, inasmuch as it professes to be the best in the
garrison. Thither I was conducted, and the portly landlord
having promised me all the comforts his inn affords,! was soon
settled and have reason to be satisfied with my accommodations.
Calls, and a hasty survey of other portions of the town occupied
the remainder of the day.

The following morning being Sunday, I repaired, at the usual
hour, to the service of mass in the Cathedral. It is a large
building, and its ample floor was covered with votaries. It
seemed as if the entire population of Gibraltar of every rank
and either sex was concentrated within its walls. There were
no seats for their accommodation ; and the absence of these,
and of everything that bore the semblance of a pew indicated
at once that it was no Protestant place of worship, — that here

CATHEDRAL - CHURCH. 35

no instruction was to be looked for from oral teaching and exhor-
tation, but that the devotional sense was to be raised, if at all,
by dumb religious show, and formal observances. The mul-
titude stood gazing on the ceremonial at the altar with apparent
indifference, or shifted their places as curiosity and convenience
prompted, till at the signal of a bell, on the elevation of the
host, all fell prostrate as though smitten by an invisible but re-
sistless power. There was perfect stillness then through all that
throng, and in that stillness a most impressive solemnity. They
appeared in united and fervent prayer, and the coldest bosom
would willingly have admitted the belief of its reality. But
soon they rose ; and the buzz of their movement, and their
blending voices as they prepared to separate, with their eager
outpouring from the temple gate, effectually dissipated the seri-
ousness of the preceding scene.

This Cathedral displays no little state and embellishment;
quite enough to prove it a genuine appendage of the Catholic
religion. It is dedicated to our Lady in Europe. The Pro-
testants are but slenderly provided with places of public wor-
ship. I can only find a Methodist conventicle and an Epis-
copalian church. Even the Jews are better supplied with
synagogues, as they count no less than three. The church
especially, is quite an ordinary accommodation. It is called
the convent chapel ; and in it the Governor and suite, and such
of the fashionable gentry within the garrison, and officers not
on duty who may feel disposed to attend, statedly worship.
The plainness of its walls and accompaniments, with the paucity
of worshippers who usually convene there, occasions severe
strictures on the genius of Protestantism by the superstitious
Catholics, when comparing the superior respect they are wont
to pay to the forms and externals of religion. There is no bell
to the chapel; and for want of such a summons, a flourish
of drums and fifes from a band stationed in Commercial Square,
announces when the hour of service arrives.

At 11, this summons was given, and I hastened to the
convent church, — truly happy in an opportunity of joining

36 GIBRALTAR.

once more with fellow Protestants, In praises offered in a fa-
miliar tongue to the common Parent and Sovereign of the
human family. The assemblage was striking in appearance.
The pews, all labelled with their proprietors' names, were occu-
pied by well dressed gentry, or officers in the full pride of
apparel ; and it is due to justice to add, that their general de-
portment during the service denoted becoming gravity. The
church is equally destitute of an organ as of a bell ; but the
place of the former was supplied by instruments of martial
sound, and the effect was far better than I could have conceived.
Horns and bassoons pealed their inspiring notes, softened
and tamed to the place and occasion. And although not ' sil-
ver trumpets,' but trumpets of war, swelled the solemn strain,
their tones were mingled with the melody of voices, particu-
larly those of females and even children, as usual in English
choirs, — and the music thus produced fell impressively on the
ear. Ah, when, thought I, shall such instruments be supremely
devoted to purposes purely hallowed, and unite their thrilling
sounds in a universal chorus to anthems in honor of the Prince
OF Peace ? When still more, shall the weapons of war perish,
and all nations shall beat their swords into ploughshares and
their spears into pruning hooks ? Alas ! as I looked round I
gathered from the objects which met my gaze a faint augury
that such an auspicious era can be near. Emblems there were
that told too painfully of the prevalence of a spirit at utter va-
riance with the pacific principles of Christianity. Everything,
I had almost said, either directly or indirectly demonstrated this
fact; nay and nearly every individual, despite of an exterior
gravity, to the very clerk who led in the responses, who was
himself a sergeant in the showy habiliments of his profession.
Yet what was one of the petitions rehearsed from the Litany ?
— ' From BATTLE, murder and sudden death, good Lord de-
liver us !' — And what was the language of others? —

* That it may please Thee, [Lord,] to give to all nations
unity, peace, and concord ) '

LITANY - COMMENTS. 37

< That it may please thee to succor, help, and comfort, all
who are in danger ;' — ' to raise up those who fall; ' — and to
show thy pity upon all prisoners and captives.''

Such was the voice of intercession. And now apply^the
commentary. There was enough, as already remarked, within
the walls of that very chapel, to show a resolution in open con-
trariety to the sentiment of the petitions uttered. I saw about
me men, whose trade was cruelty and blood ; who gloried in
the skill of a destructive use of arms; and who had bound them-
selves over to the will of a sovereign on condition of certain pay
and expectancies, to fight any battles which that sovereign with
his counsellors should determine — in fine, to consider as their
enemies all whom he should choose to designate as his, and
these to persecute and pursue even unto death. If I turned an
eye without, the impregnable bulwarks, which the hand of man
had reared in conjunction with the effective facilities of nature,
were contemplated as so many memorials of the same ferocious
dispositions. And at the hour when the philanthropic clauses
of the litany of a church, which boasts itself pre-eminently Chris-
tian, were in course of repetition, an order was abroad from the
self-styled head of that self-same church, requiring a large con-
tingent of troops from this fortress, to proceed forthwith to a
neighboring kingdom to assist one portion of its subjects to cut
the throats of another, merely for a difference of opinion touch-
ing the frame and polity of their domestic government. The
order, doubtless, comprehended some whom I at the moment
beheld. And from this scene of social worship they went
forth, — with the petition on their lips that it would please God
to give to all nations, 'unity, peace, and concord,' but — with the
fell purpose, if not to promote strife among the people to w^hom
they were sent, yet haply to extinguish the flame of discord by
the blood of those who avowed different preferences from the
will of the British Monarch. If in the hour of murderous com-
bat they should naturally pray for their own personal safety,
would not the prayer be blended with a malison on their oppo-
nents, and the fervent supplication that they might ' fall ? ' And

38 GIBRALTAR.

should the latter be delivered into their hands as * prisoners and
captives,' could the charity that bids us hope all things, preclude
the apprehension that they might fare no better than my own
unhappy countrymen v^^hen confined at Dartmoor, or in the re-
ceiving hulks upon the Thames ? ^^

If these reflections be deemed too severe, I can only say they
were naturally forced upon me by the affecting contrasts, which
I could not but observe and contemplate. I do not mean to
imply that England, as a power, is more cruel or hypocritical
than some other nations who bear in common with herself, the
name of Christian. But it is melancholy, to remark the feeble
hold which true religion, — defined as 'the wisdom from above,
and which is pure, 'peaceable, and gentle,'' — exerts over the
sentiments and actions of mankind in states of body politic. The
symbol of the cross, whereon the meek and unresisting Jesus
bled and expired, is borne on banners to fields of conflict and
of death ; and contending armies invoke vengeance from the
same impartial Power, to descend in the destruction of each
other. That the time is coming when wars shall universally
cease, and ' garments shall no more be rolled in blood,' we
know on the authority of oracles which never err. Some pre-
sages are abroad in the earth, which seem to indicate that
a juster sense is beginning to be entertained of the true interests
of the human family ; that those interests cannot be detached
from the duties which princes and subjects alike owe to the great
moral Governor of the world ; wdien their happiness will be
found alone attainable, by a rigid adherence to the great princi-
ples of equity, forbearance, and brotherly love, and when every
knee in unafl^ected homage shall bow to the One Infinite and
Universal King. ^^

But T am wandering from the occasion which elicited these
remarks. The sermon w^as a plain and unimpassioned perform-
ance. No one could complain of its length, as the entire period
of its delivery did not exceed twelve minutes. In style as well
as matter, it was coldly correct and classically dull. The offi-
ciating gentleman, I understood, is Chaplain to the Governor,

FEMALE COSTUMES. 39

the Earl of Chatham. The motto to his discourse, — for text
are but mottoes with most of the English clergy, — was that
clause in Luke, — ' a Light to lighten the Gentiles.' A gentle-
man who was near, whispered me when this was announced, —
' there is darkness enough round here to be dissipated; — the
Barbary shore on the one hand, and Spain at our very gates on
the other; — deep, deep mists,' he added, 'of ignorance, bigotry,
and superstition to be scattered.' And he spoke significantly,
though not half the truth. As an Englishman, he too, per-
haps, was exulting in the proud military stand his country was
so soon to take on the fields of Portugal, in opposition to the
intercession which deprecated ' battle, murder, and sudden
death.'

Leaving the church, I found the streets filled with gay and
moving crowds. The weather was mild and inviting, and peo-
ple of all ages and conditions were tempted abroad. Spanish
females of the lower orders, were distinguished by scarlet cloaks
which were not ungracefully worn. A hood at the top might
serve the purpose of a bonnet, but it was seldom drawn up.
Ladies of Spanish birth v/ere clad for the most part in the Eng-
lish costume, save the attire and ornaments of the head. There
was this pecuhadty in common with them and the lower orders,
namely, the absence of bonnets. In place of these, veils were
invariably worn, chiefly of black and figured lace. They were
square, and being doubled, were drawn over the crown of the
head a litde in advance of their combs. Their hair was much
braided, and it clustered in profusion round their clive brows, —
leaving enough of the beautiful swell of their high foreheads
exposed to an admirer's gaze. Their eyes are uniformly of a
piercing black, rather small, and peculiarly arch and significant
in expression. They possess a mobility, if I may so speak,
such as no dark-eyed damsels of New England know how to
practise. The head is seldom turned to gaze on a stranger, but
the eye moves as the object passes till the latter is completely
gone by, — moves too, as though it were capable of making an
entire revolution upon its pivot, and would look out of a win-

40 GIBRALTAR.

dovv behind. I can easily understand the witchery of such an
eye, to one willing to yield to its fascinations. It seems pos-
sessed of every variety of expression from a melting, yet seduc-
tive softness, to the beaming eloquence of an impassioned bril-
liancy. In stature they are seldom above the middle height, and
their forms, as a general rule, incline to the em bon point. They
walk with a vibrating movement not becoming, for it looks too
much like the studied air of voluptuousness. All the females,
whether high or low, young or old, were provided with fans,
which they occasionally employed to screen their faces from the
sun, but more commonly used as a mere plaything. At least,
while it was an appendage which none thought they could dis-
pense with, it would puzzle one to conjecture what else it really
was meant for. The complexion of the ladies is generally a
pale olive, with a slight suffusion of dusky red ; while that of the
poorer classes, is deeply embrowned to an almost tawny hue by
their more common exposure to the suns of this fervid clime.

As for the men, the more genteel ranks dress much after the
English mode. A few Spanish cloaks are seen, but most of
their nationality must be sought in their features and mein. In
these there is no mistake. The Spaniard is tovjours le meme.
Men in humbler life, however, retain pertinaciously their national
or rather sectional costumes. The natives of the neighboring
provinces of Andalusia, Murcia, and Grenada, appear in charac-
teristic dresses. Broad brimmed hats, with edges slightly
and uniformly rolled, ornamented with velvet tufts and other
decorations, — vests and jerkins, with a profusion of cord and
bell-buttons, — tight small clothes of black velvet, with rows of
gilt buttons the entire length of the outer seams, — and long gai-
ters of divers hues and textures, are among the more obv^ious
peculiarities.

There are some thousands of Spaniards in the town, forming
full two thirds of the resident population, which altogether, may
be estimated at fifteen thousand. The Jews are a pretty nu-
merous portion of the residue. They enjoy many privileges,
and are an industrious and thriving class. The poorer sort serve

POLICE. 41

as porters, and are strong and athletic men. Their working
days are but five in the week, as Saturday they religiously ob-
serve as their sabbath, and on Sunday they could find, if they
would, no employment; inasmuch as those Christians who care
litde for the season as a time of religious rest and devotion
make a point of consuming it in idleness or amusement. Sev-
eral of these outcasts of Israel have been named to me as very
rich. One, probably, is the wealthiest resident on the Rock.

And here, by the by, as the latter term has just dropped from
my pen, it occurs to me as proper, to hint the general designa-
tions of this place. Gibraltar, — I mean the mass of habitations
within the walls, — is called adlibitum, Town, Rock, or Garrison.
It is never spoken of as a City. The second appelladve is more
frequently used than the first. It is sufficiently expressive ; as
the mountain, near the base of which the town is built, seems
originally to have been nothing but bare rock. Hence the epi-
thet of rock-scorpions familiarly applied, not in jest, but sober
earnest to all born within these crowded walls. Ask of any one
if he be a Scot, an Englishman, or Spaniard ? — If his nativity
were cast on this spot, the reply will be, ' he is a scorpion ; ' —
rock being somedmes dropped as an expledve. Garrison,
however, appears to be the most common name applied to this
congregated medley of human beings. In fact, Gibraltar is only
one vast citadel. All the interior arrangements afFecdng the
civil classes of the population are regulated by, or are dependent
on the will of the acting Governor, — always a veteran soldier,-—
or such subalterns as he shall employ. The police is military. A
town Major discharges the dudes of Mayor, or intendant. A mili-
tary surveillance, and, virtually, mardal law reigns throughout.
The inhabitants, polirically, are only ciphers ; yet, knowing the
yoke to be inevitable, they quietly accommodate their necks to
it, and make amends to themselves by the money which gov-
ernment liberally disburses among them, and the large sums
which flow into the place through the channels of an extensive
foreign commerce.
6

42 GIBRALTAR.

Gibraltar constitutes a little nation or principality by itself.
The inhabitants have scarce any personal intercourse with the
neighboring Spaniards, except when they come to the Garrison.
Algeziras, the venerable ruins of Cartheya, Gausin, whence large
supplies of wine are annually transported hither, and other inter-
esting spots within a limited distance, are seldom visited by them.
If a merchant on business, plan a visit to Cadiz, Seville, or Mala-
ga, he goes there by water, and never thinks of journeying by
land. It is rarely safe, and in the present disturbed state of the
adjacent provinces, it could not be hazarded without a strong
armed escort. Most of the inhabitants who are not of Spanish
birth, spend whole years here without stirring outside the lines.
And if a gentleman make an excursion beyond the neutral
ground, he is said to have gone to Spain. This was the reply
which I received from a servant of the house yesterday, when
inquiring for the landlord. ' Gone to Spain? ^ I repeated, —
and in my simplicity bethought myself of Barcelona, Valencia,
or very possibly, Toledo, and Madrid. — To Spain indeed !
This, fancied I, looks much like taking French leave, perhaps a
flight from some eager creditor, to decamp without notice to an-
other country. Antonio was as much perplexed by my sur-
prise, as I was at his vague answer, till the matter was cleared
up by the information that his master, with a friend, had rode
beyond the frontier for recreation on the beach. Probably his
travels on this occasion in the dominions of King Ferdinand,
comprehended a circuit about twice the length of Church-street.

I should remark, in concluding my sketch of the occurrences
of yesterday, that at the evening parade, a stand of colors was
presented to a regiment about leaving for Portugal. They
were given by a lady, with the usual formalities of speeches,
compliments, and military salutes — the reply of the receiving
officer spoke his gallantry in either sense of the term.

This day I have chiefly devoted to an inspection of the arti-
ficial wonders of the Rock. The weather was uncommonly
clear and serene, and a better opportunity could not be chosen
for enjoying the magnificent prospects from the topmost peak.

ASCENT OF THE MOUNTAIN. ' 43

For a survey of the promontory is deemed incomplete till the
summit is gained, and the spectator looks forth on the panorama
of objects around. A Bombardier accompanied me to the quar-
ters of Sergeant W., who undertook to lead me up the ascent,
through the windings of this w^orse than Cretan Labyrinth.

But how shall I communicate what I beheld ? To describe
what is indescribable, or what, if subjected to elaborate descrip-
tion, would be unintelligible, I confess myself little inclined. I
had read a score of labored accounts of the mysteries of this
strong hold, and thought, at last, that I had projected in my
mind quite an accurate conception of their structure and ap-
pearance. ^^ But I have found myself totally in error. If the
reader will go along with me, and patiently take up with such
detached notices and reflections as may chance to offer, I shall
be glad of his company, and will endeavor not to mistify his
mind with incomprehensibles.

And first, let us glance at the tow^n we shall leave behind. It
is built chiefly on ledges, artificially levelled from the original
slope of the Rock, on its northwest side. These ledges, whether
used as streets or esplanades, may be compared to shelves or
steps cut with great labor and precision. The houses and other
buildings thus rise in successive tiers from the base of the pro-
montory, about a fourth of the way up. At the foot, and in ad-
vance of them towards the water, are the old and new Moles, —
erections upheaved from the very deep. To the right of the
town, as viewed from the moles, is seen the high wall built by
Charles the Fifth, which is carried far up the acclivity. It is
as useless, for the purposes of modern defence, as the wall of
China. The town, indeed, has pressed over and beyond it to
the south, not minding the limits which it was designed origin-
ally to aflSx to it. All the lower part of the Garrison, including
the Moles, is protected by very strong batteries. They line the
coast as far as Point Europa, two miles to the east ; but the
principal defences are to be sought far above. Let us set forth
by a route conducting on the left.

44 GIBRALTAR.

The first object of peculiar interest which meets us is
an old Moorish tower. It seems to stand as a war-worn senti-
nel, to the dark and fearful passages in the mountain-bosom,
which stretch beyond. By whom the tower was erected is not
ascertained. It probably is a monument of the first successful
descent of the Moors, in 711. Certain it is, that their general,
Tarik, threw up some military works shordy after his debarka-
tion ; and the massive strength of this same tower may have
well endured from that remote age. That conqueror, })e it
noted, gave name to this celebrated rock, — Tarik, by con-
traction, being associated with Gibel, an Arabic term signifying
mountain.

Taking up the line of march, we enter a subterranean path
leading under the wall of the garrison, and soon come to the first
passage within the solid crust of the rock. It is a vaulted hori-
zontal shaft, of one hundred and fifty feet in length. We emerge
from it to enter another called Wyllis' gallery. The length of
this is something more than a hundred yards, and its breadth
from three to five. It is dimly lighted through the embrasures
for cannon ; and what with this dubious sort of day and the na-
ture of the objects displayed around, — heavy ordnance re-
posing on iron frames, piles of balls, bombs and other terrible
missiles, and doors communicating ever and anon with inner
chambers filled with warlike stores, — the feelings excited by
the survey are anything but cheerful.

Mounting still higher, we come to a longer and more extra-
ordinary excavation, called the Windsor Gallery. It extends very
nearly a tenth of a raile ; and like the former, has been entirely
blasted by powder. Enough of the rock on the outer side
remains to serve as a parapet, or shield^ impervious to ball, even
could cannon be brought to bear against it. But its elevation
places it above the reach of the longest shot; so that those who
serve its guns in times of siege, are perfectly secure from the
reach of assailants. They have oni v to pour down upon the
defenceless heads of invaders, showers of grape and shells.

EXCAVATIONS. 45

Besides these passages, there are several other galleries lined
with artillery, and wrought with extraordinary toil within the
outer shell of the massive rock. Staircases occasionally occur,
hewn with great regularity : also flues and perpendicular shafts
for ventilation and other purposes. Of the magazines, there
seems no end.

There are two or three spacious and lofty apartments, which
altogether in boldness of design, and beauty of finish, perhaps,
surpass the other wonders of these interior constructions. The
most remarkable of these, is called St George's Hall. It is a
stupendous excavation from the heart of a turreted crag, which
juts naturally from the surface of the mountain. Externally,
it has much the appearance of an artificial tower. Within, an
apartment forty yards in circuit, and proportionably lofty, has
been hewn with incredible labor. The rock forming the walls
and flooring, has been perfectly smoothed. But half a dozen
yawning port holes, and a circular funnel leading through the
roof for the escape of smoke, sufficiently indicate that other pur-
poses, than those of mere beauty, were consulted in this curious
structure. Six cannon of tremendous calibre, — sixtyfour poun-
ders,— are stationed here, ready to discharge their thunders on
any daring besieger by land or flood. They are so nicely poised
as to be capable, with a little exertion, of being pointed in any
direction.

Some idea of the extent of the excavations may be formed
from the fact, that they are sufficient to receive at once, the en-
tire garrison of Gibraltar; and the troops composing it, are
never less than five thousand. Not only in the galleries would
the latter be completely covered from an enemy's fire, but also
in passing along the (ew open paths edging the surface of the
rock, and which communicate between one subterranean post
and another. For, these paths are all guarded by high parapets
of solid masonry, so that even the movements of the soldiery
along them, or the carriage of their munitions, could not be per-
ceived by assailants at the foot of the Rock,

GIBRALTAR.

Arrived now at a landing on the military road, leading to the
Signal station, let us pause ere proceeding, and cast an eye
downward. We have ascended thus far, by a subterranean
mazy route, which the appearance of the rock alone, would not
prepare one to expect. The outside view of things is much the
same as left when rudely fashioned by the hand of nature. But
its face masks the most potent artificial enginery of destruction,
perhaps, ever concentrated within a space of equal: dimensions,
in the universe. And for what object ? Why in fact, — for it
comes to this, — to allow John Bull to say, in a tone of defiance
to all other people, ' You shall not wrest from my grasp this
rock, with the means of annoyance which it offers ; or, if pre-
suming to question my title to it, and placing yourselves within
reach, you shall bear the vengeance which can hence be instan-
taneously hurled on your devoted heads.' If it be matter then
of national pride to possess such an indomitable strong hold,
alas, how paltry is the thing called human glory ! Here we find
men, first opening the flinty bowels of this huge, frightful preci-
pice, — not for the sake of habitations, — for the fertile earth
elsewhere, is yet quite ample enough for the races of men
that people it, — not for defences against wild and ferocious
beasts, as in the infancy of society, when man had to dispute
the occupancy of the soil, with the shaggy monsters of the
wilderness and wood. But these works, the wonder of a civil-
ized age, and boast of a civilized people, from the skill, the toil,
and the treasure they have cost, were constructed for the pur-
pose of helping man to inflict the greatest possible mischief on
his fellow man, on the plea of assumed self-interest, or the spur
of the basest revengeful motives. Such are human beings, the
direst foes of their own species ! Civilization, for the most part,
seems chiefly to be prized for the greater powers and com-
binations of artificial skill for mutual annoyance, which it fur-
nishes over and above the means of mere brute and untutored
force. Within the dark, hollowed passes of this stern mountain-
cliff, men, civilized men, contentedly, nay proudly, immure
themselves for the sake of plying in self-security the work of

SIGNAL STATION. 47

Strife and death upon others of their species. They call it en-
trenching themselves for the purpose of glorious warfare, when
occasions for waging such warfare arise. But let names be
changed, and the dignity of this, founded as it is in deception,
soon vanishes. Call that entrenching, a burrowing, and these
boasted ' galleries and halls,' so many rocky dens and length-
ened caves, — consider too, bow much of blood has been shed
in contests for their possession, and then say wherein man the
civilized, differs from man the savage, or either of them in sun-
dry grovelling and ferocious tastes and habitudes, from the brute
that ' wants discourse of reason.'

Turning from the spot which has suggested these reflections,
we continue to ascend by abroad, open road, carried in zig-zag
lines from point to point, up the mountain. The bare uniform
surface of rock we leave behind, and enter on a steep, thickly
strewn with large loose stones, chiefly masses of primary marble.
Among their openings and crevices, some varieties of shrubs,
herbage, and even flowers, contrive to shoot, and with a luxu-
riance, considermg their situation, quite surprising. The labor
expended on this part of the route, renders the ascent much less
formidable than a distant view would suggest ; the mattock and
drill, with that unfailing agent, gunpowder, having been employ,
ed at every step to smooth or facilitate the way ; so that mounted
cannon, and heavy military stores, may be transported its entire
length with comparative ease. Approaching the Signal Station,
the road is supported in several places by artificial walls, at
least ten yards in height, — the labor in constructing which, as
well as the rest of this spacious pathway, ceases to surprise
after contemplating the gigantic works of human hands below.

At the Station are very neat quarters. A sergeant is in com-
mand — who, in company with his young wife, who seems all
contentment, and the society of half a dozen soldiers, makes out
to lead a somewhat cheery life, even in his secluded Alpine
aerie. He finds, too, a source of profit in accommodating visit-
ers with refreshments, from such stores as he contrives to fetch
from time to tim^, from the garrison below ; and better still,

48 GIBRALTAR.

in the sale of baubles and trinkets, wrought from specimens of
the spar taken from St Michael's cave farther up the mount.
This spar is intrinsically very beautiful, and is susceptible of the
finest polish. It is wrought into inkstands of divers forms, man-
tel ornaments, seals, whistles, — even necklaces and eardrops
which, when set in gold, are not inelegant.

Provided with an assortment of these, as memorials for other
eyes and hands hereafter, once more under the conduct of our
trusty guide, we set forth on the last and topmost stage. A
weary walk, — no longer over a military road, but a rugged, un-
certain foot-path, at times scarcely traceable, and often boldly
steep and shelving, — leads to the south pinnacle. That gained
at length, a small platform, partly natural partly artificial, is
reached, which commands a view of sublimest interest.

There is an elevation of feeling inspired by the consciousness
of being on such a spot. The works of men contemplated
from thence, dwindle into insignificance ; and the races of men,
sink into pigmies. An observer forgets that he is one of the
species on which he feels privileged for the moment, to look
down ; and in proportion to the loftiness of his station, he
experiences a kindred loftiness of emotion, and is seemingly
advanced to a correspondent exaltation in the scale of being.

As the works of men decline in importance, when surveyed
from such a commanding reach of vision, those of nature are
invested with new, or rather they assume their appropriate
grandeur. And what better pinnacle from which to look forth
on these, than this majestic height of Calpe ! With an altitude
of fifteen hundred feet, and all the bolder from its towering
abruptly from the water's edge, the prospect its peak affords,
embraces a circuit of forty leagues; and within that circuit,
portions of two mighty seas, and of two vast continents are
included. On the African shore, the eye takes in extensive
tracts of the stern, hard-featured realms of Morocc o and Fez ;
and in Europe, the fertile and picturesque territory of Andalusia
comprehending the provinces, which anciently were the king-
doms of Seville and Granada. To the north and west, we

PROSPECT— ST xMlCIIAEL'S CAVE. 49

descry the mountain chain which separates Southern Andalusia
from the rich valleys bathed by the lower waters of the beautiful
Guadalquiver. On the east, appears the taller barrier of Sierra
de Ronda ; and in the remoter background, the snow-capped
ridges of Sierra Neveda and Alpuxarras. The harbor of
Gibraltar beneath, and on the other side of the promontory, the
broad bay of Catalan with its graceful sweep of blue waters,
under the serene bright sky of such a day as the present, come
in for the tribute of admiration to the beauties they lend, in
completing the natural features of the magnificent scene.

These are objects that wear the grandeur of the stamp of
durability. Yet man, — insect man, — calls them his domain; —
forgetting his own ephemeral being, and the countless generations
of his species who have passed successively away, while the seas
have continued to roll, and the mountains around, have stood on
their deep foundations. How many people, in diflerent ages,
have visited these shores, in quest of traffic, or for the purposes
of conquest, — Phoenicians, Egyptians, and Greeks, in remote
anUquity ! And of others, how many have claimed, in turn,
the sovereignty of this rugged strand,— Carthaginians, Romans,
Saracens, Spaniards, and Britons ! Yet what are the vesfiges
of their sojourn and occupancy ? Gibraltar, it is true, remains ;
but the flourishing towns once spread along the coast, which Stra-
bo, Pliny, and Pomponius Mela described, viz. Cartheya, Mela-
ria, Belo, and Besippo, — exist only in history. A few shape-
less ruins seen just yonder, serve to determine the site of the first;
but with the others have been buried even the traces of their
former existence. So perishing is man, and so perishable are
his works, while nature, regardless of the idle sway he usurps,
outstands the long roll of his multiplied generations, and bids
defiance to the changes which level him and his works with
the dust. 1^

But I forget in my musings, the grotto of St Michael. It
is an object truly worthy of inspection. A short detour in de-
scending from the pinnacle, conducts the visiter to its entrance.
The first floor, which approaches nearly to a square, extends
7

50 GIBRALTAR.

seventy feet, and the height of the apartment is at least fifty.
It communicates with others of different dimensions, opening
into the recesses of the mountain ; and from the innermost of
them, a devious passage proceeds to a depth that never has
been explored. The love of marvel, peculiar to the vulgar, has
originated the notion that this passage extends under the Straits,
though fathomless, quite across to the opposite continent. An
outlandish breed of apes, found near the summit of the rock,
and generally near the mouth of the cave, exactly like those
which abound in Barbary, has been appealed to in support of
the ridiculous chimera.

These spacious caverns are embellished with a profusion of
ornaments, which nature, in one of her sportful moods, has most
tastefully supplied. Crystallized columns, imitating in beauty and
variety all the wonders of architecture, support the fretted roof.
Some of the spars are round, some conical and fluted, some
slender, others grand and massive, — but all pleasing in their
very irregularity. Clusters of crystalline formations, in the
shape of isicles, hang from various parts of the ceiling, height-
ening the magical effect of the entire assemblage. The white-
ness of the spars in one of the caves, suggests the fancy of an
ivory hall, — the gorgeous saloon of the Mountain Genius.

But there is a limit to the pleasure of wonder ; and if the
reader be as tired with the description, as I am with the task of
gazing, he will cheerfully leave with me even this scene of en-
chantment, and hasten to the world of little men below. As we
descend, and objects in the bay before us become more distinct,
two vessels, of superior magnitude to the others, attract attention.
Their double white streaks, chequered with numerous squares
of black, denote them to be line of battle ships, (the Melville, and
Windsor Castle,) which are just arrived for the purpose of trans-
porting a detachment of the garrison to Lisbon. A flotilla of
barges, diminished by distance to the size of respectable spiders
creeping over the waters, are seen making their way to the inner
mole. A moving throng, like a swarm of emmets, darkens the
quay It is of men, assembled to witness the embarkation of a

STRENGTH OF THE FORTRESS. 51

regiment, which the barges are sent to convey to the ships.
On a signal, the crowd of spectators separates, and the troops
march into the open space which is left, witli drums beating,
colors flying, and all the pomp of military parade. But soon
consigned to the boats in waiting, they are seen floating from
the shore ; and the multitude is thrown back into the town,
attracted by another object. ^*

Arrived at the foot of the mount, the spectacle meets us.
Church-street, up which we proceed, is filled with curious
groups, expecting the approach of a regiment to succeed the
one already embarked. The doors, windows, and even roofs
of the surrounding buildings, are thronged with spectators of both
sexes and all conditions. A peal from martial instruments at
length proclaims the march of the gallant corps. A hundred
musicians, the full band of the garrison, precede. The soldiers
in fine spirits, with burnished arms and goodly array, move to
their inspiring notes. Their officers, well mounted, grace the
pageant if they do nothing more. The neighs of their prancing
war-steeds, the heavy measured tread of the infantry, the swell
of the majestic music, and the shout of mingling huzzas, are
sufficient to stir even a sluggish bosom. But from these deaf-
ening sounds, from the elbowing crowds and choking dust, an
escape is at last welcome ; and with pleasure, I find myself once
more in the enjoyment of comparative quiet, within my apart-
ments at the King's Arms.

Jan. 10. — The more a stranger sees of the defences of Gib-
raltar, the more he is astonished at the skill and labor employed
in their arrangement, and the enormous sums expended in their
construction. The northern front, it should be remembered, of
the Rock is naturally almost perpendicular ; the east side is full
of frightful precipices ; while the south, being narrow and abrupt,
presents hardly any possibility of approach, even to an enemy in
command of the sea. On neither of those sides therefore, can
this tremendous mass be considered as exposed, and it has neve
been attacked from them. There remains only the western
front, which is almost as abrupt as the others, but it may be ap-

62 GIBRALTAR.

proached with shipping from the bay, and presents a kind of
pied a terre, in the comparatively level spot on which the town
is built. Here, accordingly, have' the efforts of assailants been
directed, and here are most of the great batteries and works of
defence. Yet they are not confined to this face of the Rock, or
its more immediate base. The fortifications extend, as I have
already said, all along the shore from the water-gate to Point
Europa, every assailable part being made completely defensible.
The coast bristles with cannon ; and each possible approach by
land or sea is capable of being swept and raked by innumera-
ble cross-fires, which would annihilate an enemy's forces in near
assault. The exact number of guns, mounted and kept in con-
stant readiness for use, is five hundred and sixtynine. The
largest of them are classed as sixtyeight pounders. The big-
gest howitzer measures thirteen and a half inches in calibre.
Besides this immense amount of ordnance, there are one hun-
dred and fifty thousand stand of small arms kept in the arsenals
of the garrison, the major part destined for distribution, when
needed, to other stations. There are a number of provisionary
reservoirs for water, — all bomb-proof, — within the garrison, to
meet the exigencies of a siege. The largest are capable of
containing forty tuns. Every article of food for the support
of the military and other inhabitants of the Rock, being ne-
cessarily produced elsewhere, — for the stock of vegetables
furnished from the few garden patches within the garrison,
is too inconsiderable to be taken into account, — the cost of
supplying the residents here, even in times of peace, with the
necessaries of life, is very great. In war, such cost must be
materially enhanced, even to a people that might be masters of
the sea. Barbary, or more strictly Morocco, has been in the
habit of furnishing, by treaty, two thousand bullocks annually
for the support of the garrison ; but for them, the Emperor has
taken care to be well paid. Many other supphes are drawn
from Portugal and Spain ; and a large portion of the luxuries
which become by habit so many necessaries to human com-
fort yearly consumed here, must be brought of course from

COST — EXPEDIENCY. 53

much greater distances. On the whole, the cost to the Eng-
lish Government for maintaining Gibraltar is prodigious ; and
a fearful sum of millions sterling might be footed up of the en-
tire expenditure since 1704, when it fell into British hands.
The incidental disbursements for the mere purposes of show, as
well as convenience, have not been light. For to the south of
the town, a beautiful stretch of pleasure grounds, called the Al-
meda, has been laid out, or rather, created, — the very soil for
the support of the ornamental trees, flowering shrubs and verdant
parteeres, having been deposited there, and supported, in many-
places, by firm-set walls. It was constructed as a place of
recreation and promenade to accommodate the military of the
garrison, though it is open indeed to all; and well it is, for
by the former it seems to be seldom used. The Almeda is
indeed, a delicious spot, and taking into account all its embel-
hshments, it is quite too fine for the place and object. It would
form a more suitable appendage to a nobleman's mansion, or
even a palace, than this grim fastness.

Now the question is natural. Does the British government
derive advantages from the possession of the Rock at all com-
parable to the sums lavished upon it? It may be reasonably
doubted. Gibraltar is by no means the key to the Mediter-
ranean, I mean in the sense in which the expression is generally
used. For it has never been necessary for an enemy to ask
permission of entrance to that sea from the British authorities
at Gibraltar. The fleets of Spain and France in the late war
passed and repassed the Straits at their own pleasure. They
-were pursued, it is true, by British squadrons, but the Rock itself
did not move an inch from its foundations, nor could it fling a
single shot to arrest their passage. Had they entered the
harbor indeed, they would have then come within the power of
the fortress, but there was no need of that ; and it must have
required great pains for them to have put themselves in the
reach of its fire at all. In fact, Gibraltar alone no more com-
mands the entrance of the sea, than the opposite rock of
Ceuta. It is doubtless serviceable to the English as a place of

64 GIBRALTAR.

depot for naval supplies ; but they already have other stations
for those objects in the Mediterranean. Besides, Portugal just
outside the Straits, has its harbors ever open for British ships ;
and stores to any amount can there be obtained when wanted,
quite as cheaply too as by the present policy of garnering them
up for years in Gibraltar.

The wisdom, moreover, of the disbursements which have
had in view the greater security of the post, may reasonably be
questioned. Gibraltar, to all intents, was sufficiently guarded
before. It has withstood three famous sieges — those of 1705,
'27 and '81. In the last, the power of artillery was tried in
every shape against the fortress. If then the utmost means of ag-
gression, directed by the most consummate skill, and maintained
with sufficient constancy for the effect of full experiment, could
avail nothing towards its reduction, why multiply costly bul-
warks in the vain notion of rendering it still more impreg-
nable? 15

There are but two methods whereby Gibraltar can be re-
duced, namely, famine and treachery. So long as England
continues as formidable by sea as she now is, the former need
not be apprehended ; and as for the latter, it is a danger little
likely to occur in any event. It would seem then that she has
been expending most uselessly a large part of the sums which
she has prodigally laid out upon this Rock, at least for the last
half century. The people of England are duped into the notion
that its possession is of vital importance to the best interests of
the empire ; and contentedly they acquiesce in a tax to keep
up a post which flatters the national pride, and furnishes the
government with another pretext to maintain a large muster-roll
of military, and to feed here a few of their regiments with the
costly supplies which that tax annually provides. ^^

CHAPTER III

GIBRALTAR.

Spanish Lines. — A Walk into the Country. — StRoque. — Dulness of a Soldier's
Life in a Garrison. — Impolicy of maintaining Troops in Idleness. — Feelings
of the Military. — Sternness of Army Regulations. — Illustration. — An
Afternoon on the Mountain. — Arrival of the President's Message. — Cry of
War. — England and the United States. — Dispositions of the Moorish Re-
gency. — Accommodations in Gibraltar. — A Whimsical Scene. — Literature.
MrH— .

King's Arms. January 11. — The day being unusually
serene and inviting, I concluded to devote it to a short pedes-
trian excursion outside the lines into old Spain. Leaving the
landport, I crossed the neutral ground on a causeway almost
buried in sands, and stopped to admire the ingenious sluices,
and other contrivances, by which the neck of the isthmus can
be inundated in case of a future siege of Gibraltar. A popula-
tion of some hundreds is crowded in wooden houses erected on
the neutral territory. They remain there only by sufferance.
If there be danger to the garrison, or on any other pretext
which may be thought good by the British commandant, the
buildings must all be struck and removed, like so many tents,
within the space of eight and forty hours. A walk of a mile
brought me to the Spanish frontier. It is composed of a line
of low breastworks, dirty block houses, and decaying forts of
no strength, and truly contemptible in appearance. The names
of St Barbe and St Filippo, which designate the miserable
works erected on either flank, are characteristic of the super-
stition of the people to w^hom they belong.

Here I found myself among groups of ill-clad, noisy soldiers,
whose fierce air and scowling looks bespoke no encouraging

56 GIBRALTAR

welcome. However, they offered no molestation, though the
lips of several muttered as I passed, an execration on the nation
to which they naturally supposed that I belonged, and about
which I took no pains to undeceive them ; I mean Old Eng-
land. In truth, just at present, the grudge they bear the Eng-
lish is very strong ; and it is blended, somewhat strangely, with
a spirit of disaffection to their own government, on account of
arrearages withheld from their small pay, and some other griev-
ances of which they complain. Lrcaving them to their private
troubles, I pursued my walk by a path which led down to the
bay, and followed the windings of the shore for two or three
miles. There was something so picturesque in the scenery
around, that I frequently paused to admire it. The shore was
beautifully curved. The waters of the bay were blue and tran-
quil. Algeziras with its white walls looked prettily enough in
the foreground. On my right the face of the country was suf-
ficiently broken and varied for the effect of landscape. Gib-
raltar rose towering in the background. A few wayfarers occa-
sionally passed in the peculiar garbs of Andalusia. The scene
was enlivened in one quarter of the beach by a company of
fishermen engaged in dragging their net ashore. It produced
an unusual freight, if I might judge from their merry shouts, and
other demonstrations of pleasure on hauling it to land.

The country on leaving the shore, I found mostly unenclosed
The peasants' houses were thinly scattered. They are built of
stone, and their general appearance was comfortless. It was
not unusual to see small plats fenced off for gardens. But
they had a slovenly look. The Barbary aloe is chiefly used
for live-hedging ; and no plant can be conceived more effec-
tual. It attains, in this climate, extraordinary size and height.
But the growth of the prickly pear, {cactus opuntia,) struck
me as far more wonderful. Even in our green-houses,
at least in New England, it is a low feeble plant, scarcely
elevating itself a few inches from the ground. But here it
shoots up its broad, sturdy boughs like antlers, to the height of
eight and even ten feet. It is a valuable plant ; for it is a pro-

ST RoauE. 57

lific bearer, and the fruit which is found quite palatable on a
first trial, is greatly esteemed by those who use it, as here,
habitually. This cactus is sometimes employed for hedging, but
more generally it is dispersed in little plantations surrounded by
the broad-leaved aloe mentioned before.

With these partial exceptions, the country continued open
quite up to St Roque, and mostly as far as the eye could stretch
beyond. I do not mean to say that the land, though unenclosed,
is uncultivated. On the contrary, some beautiful tracts of
tillage were observed, and the fields were rich in many spots,
with almost vernal verdure.

I have already remarked upon the eligible position of St
Roque. The appearance of the town itself is pleasing on
the exterior, but once entered the charm vanishes. It is found
badly paved, the streets are narrow and dirty, and the houses
with their heavy walls, and grated lower windows, look like so
many small prisons. The square was the only quarter of the
town that betokened animation. It was occupied chiefly with
military, none of them however on duty. Some of the soldiers
were drinking on benches in the open air ; some were playing
at cards, or dice ; some were asleep on the bare pavement, and
others sauntering idly to and fro in the open square. The only
object which claimed attention was the church. I hastily in-
spected it. It boasts some finery in the shape of mean pictures
and other pious gewgaws, but on the whole it is a sorry concern,
much on a par with the poverty-stricken look of the town
generally.

St Roque, as well as Algeziras, was settled in the early part
of the last century by Spaniards from Gibraltar, who were un-
willing to remain under the dominion of the English. To attract
refugees thither, certain municipal privileges were granted to
both towns, but they are now, as they have long been, in a very
languishing condition.

On my way back, I passed two or three crucifixes erected in
lone places, to indicate scenes of murder. The sanctity of
these memorials is piously thought to make some amends for

58 GIBRALTAR.

the profanation of such spots by the hand of violence ; and the
devout Catholic as he looks, forgets not to cross himself and
ejaculate a prayer for the souls of the unhappy victims.

I reached the land-port just as the sun was dipping beneath
the bJue waves of the w^estern ocean. A moment after, the
evening gun fired, and the heavy gates of the fortress, swinging
upon their clanging hinges, were closed for the night. The
unlucky wanderer who chances to be a moment too late, is
obliged to take up his quarters in the neutral suburb, and forget,
if he can, his chagrin in sleep till the morning signal for unbarring
the entrances.

Jan. 13. — With whatever feelings of pride Englishmen at a
distance may contemplate the possession of Gibraltar, those
who serve on the station heartily detest it as a residence. Both
officers and men, a large portion of whom have been here for
several years, look upon it as a place of intolerable confinement.
They drag out a monotonous existence, biting the chains they
are compelled to wear, in other words, execrating the lot which
dooms them to so dismal a scene of exile. The round of duties
of today must be acted over tomorrow. They are for the most
part mere military forms, which indeed are of necessary ob-
servance, but yielding no variety, they are exceedingly weari-
some. Parades are attended, drills practised, guards mounted
with much the same dull uniformity that a mill-horse treads his
plodding circuit. All, in the intervals of duty, have abundance
of leisure, and the very amusements devised for the employment
of this, become by repetition, as insipid as the petty details of
duty itself. There is a good garrison library open to the officers,
but like the Almeda, it is little used, I mean by the generality,
even for the purpose of an occasional lounge. The arrival of
a ship, particularly a mail packet, produces by the circulation
of news a little stir upoa the surface of things, like the ruffle of
a transient breeze, but it soon subsides, and a dead sea calm
once more prevails. A longing, wishful look may be cast on
the receding sail ; but the exile cannot move along with it, and
he finds himself, like the victim fabled of old, still chained to a
rock, with the vulture of ennui continuing to gnaw at his heart.

DULNESS OF A GARRISON, 59

A soldier's life in a garrison is ever complained of as irksome.
It is as the calm experienced on a sea-voyage, which, once suf-
fered, the most timid ever after deprecate. A storm is pre-
ferable. For let the vessel but beat against adverse gales, it is
still motion, and that motion is exciting. She may not gain at
such times one furlong in her direct course ; she may even be
endangered by the fury of the blasts ; but anything short of the
prospect of a perfect wreck, is welcomed rather than rest.
Now the soldier in a garrison rests, — rests from the toils of
marching, the perils of fighting., and all the endurances incident
to an active campaign. But rest brings apathy, and the soldier
pines in the absence of wonted excitement, and he longs to be
at his old operation of cutting of throats, though in so doing he
hazards his own. When the troops ordered to Portugal
marched a few mornings ago to their place of embarkation, the
most lively joy was painted on their countenances ; while their
comrades who were destined to remain, took no pains to dis-
guise their chagrin that they could not go with them. A mel-
ancholy condition of society truly, — that an order of men
should be separated from the peaceful walks of life, to occupa-
tions professedly militant; that armies should be raised and
even kept on foot in times of national tranquillity to meet the
possible occurrence of hostilities from abroad, and that they
should be trained to tastes and habits which can only be exer-
cised amid scenes which humanity deplores, and reason and
religion unite to reprobate !

But war now-a-days is happily the exception to the rule.
Yet the nations of Europe keep up respectively a belligerent
attitude, certainly their belligerent equipments* The armies of
them all are enormous in proportion both to their population
and their immediate wants. The causes and consequences of
this it would be curious to examine ; but the topic is too fruit-
ful, and if followed up would lead me far from my present
object. I confine myself to the statement of the fact, that the
sovereigns of Europe are maintaining large,— disproportionably
large — standing armies j yet war, I repeat, is the exception to

60 GIBRALTAR.

the rule. It is contrary to the established, or the ostensible policy
at least, of the leading powers ; and what do they, with their
immense forces in times of peace? They are content to
keep them on foot for the mere purpose of taking the field with
advantage when occasional ruptures occur, and they suffer them
to remain wholly useless to their several states during the long
intervals of public quiet. The Romans, on the contrary, were
accustomed to employ their soldiers, on the cessation of arms,
upon works of public utility. They were not suffered to be idle,
and better it was for the soldiers themselves as well as for the
community, that they were kept constantly active. Many of
the noble highways and aqueducts, — monuments of Roman en-
terprise, quite as memorable as were the conquests of Roman
arms, — were constructed by the soldiery both of the republic and
the empire in the ' piping times of peace.' The Roman soldier
was taught the use of the mattock as well as falchion ; and he
knew well, — nor did he disdain the toil, — to rear the triumphal
arch that commemorated the victory which his valor had as-
sisted to achieve. Buonaparte too, who has read many a useful
lesson to the crowned legitimates of the age, took care that his
troops should never rust in idleness. The respites between his
campaigns, and the intervals of garrison duty, were not listless
breathing spells, — mere blanks in the soldier's life. They
were applied to works of general benefit, works no ways incon-
sistent with a military calling, which saved his men from the
enervation of inactivity, and which, far from abridging their self-
respect, or devotion to him and his cause, made them truer as
well as hardier patriots and soldiers.

But in the English service, such employments would be
deemed derogatory. The profession of arms, it is thought,
would be sullied by uniting with it the knowledge, or at least the
manual practice, of arts and enterprises purely civil. According-
ly, in times like these, the standing force of the crown is quartered
in numerous garrisons, pent up as here in Gibraltar, like stalled
oxen fatting against the day of slaughter, — both officers and
men seeking relief from their heavy hours in reckless, en-

TEMPER OF THE MILITARY. 61

ervating dissipations, differing simply in the case of the former
by the absence of a more offensive grossness, or in being what is
called a little more genteel. Corrupt themselves, they naturally
corrupt others around them by the vices which idleness and
temptation unavoidably engender. It is a system of wickedness
which nurses this whole order of things ; the guilt of which,
though not confined to England, applies to her in fearful pro-
portion, and the curse of which will one day fall on her devoted
head, in common perhaps with other nations of the old world,
with a fulness of retributive severity.

I speak understanding^ of the disaffectedness of the military to
Gibraltar particularly, as a place of residence. I have conversed
with officers and privates, and all unite in execrations of the
Rock, They look upon it as ^ vast prison. And truly their
disgust seems not wholly unreasonable. For the fev/ days
which I have spent here are quite enough for my own con-
tentment, and if they were to be multiplied into so many months
or years, I know not how I could support the tediousness of such
incarceration.

From what, moreover, I have thus far been able to learn, I
am satisfied that there is another species of disaffection not so
easily cured. I have uniformly found in conversation with the
subalterns and privates of the garrison as they have fallen in my
way, a hearty dislike expressed to the service in which they
are enlisted. I have been astonished at the freedom of such
confessions, especially as I have heard them muttered by those
who did not know me to be an American. But in all cases
when this has been understood, the most eager inquiries have
been made relative to the United States, and the strong desire
has been expressed of one day beholding that blessed country,
and perhaps finding a setdement in it. It is not surprising that
such men, early kidnapped for the most part directly or indi-
rectly into their present vocation, and removed at the v/ill of
others from field to field and post to post, over the surface of the
globe, should have their attachment weakened, if not estranged,
towards their native land. But it is interesting to find, that if

62 GIBRALTAR.

they care little for the country of their birth, they are not indiffer-
ent to another country, preeminently free and prosperous beyond
the Atlantic, and that thither they turn their eyes as to a land
of hope, if not of promise to themselves. In fact, throughout
Gibraltar, there is a strong leaven of American feeling in con-
tradistinction to that purely British. The frequency of arrivals
from the United States keeps up a knowledge of all the impor-
tant events transpiring there. Our fine vessels which enter the
harbor with their commercial freights, and now and then a
stately ship of war appearing, as if to give'a protecting look to
those * rich argosies,' are specimens of the wealth and power of
the Republic. Merchants who have established their houses here,
and who conduct an extensive and lucrative business, are men
that for integrity in their private dealings, general intelligence,
highmindedness and urbanity, would do honor as the represent-
atives of any people. America, accordingly is well known, and
being known, she is respected.

I have met thus far with but one person who has shown any
thing like dislike, — and his, apparently is a most cordial one,
— to the government and people of the United States. This I
found in a Colonel of one of the regiments just ordered away.
The officer is noted for his habitual churlishness, and his cynical
state of feeling towards America may be explainable from
his having learned experimentally the skill of our troops in sharp
shooting, while opposed to them on the Canada lines in the late
war. I dined in his company a day or two since, when an inci-
dent occurred which, while it exhibits his character, I mention
for a more important purpose, viz. to illustrate the hardships
often resulting to individuals from the sternness of military regu-
lations. 1 should premise, that at the time referred to, though
the troops were embarked they were prevented from sailing by
contrary winds, and the officers were permitted to remain on
shore.

During the dinner the Colonel was informed that a woman
was without who was very anxious to see him. He took no
notice of the message. An hour after when the dessert was

SOLDIER'S WIVES. 63

served, he was told that the same woman was returned who ap-
peared to be in great distress, and she begged that he would
grant her a moment's hearing. The ladies, among whom was
the Colonel's wife, now interposed, and earnestly desired him to
see the poor stranger. At last he went out, but soon returned as
moody as he left. ^ Who is she ? ' was the inquiry. * A sol-
dier's wife of the ,' he replied. ' What does she want ? ^

' To go with her husband to Portugal. ' — ' And what did you
say ? ' — 'I asked if she had drawn her lot ? She answered, she
had, and it was a blank ; — I then told her to go about her
business.' — ' Is she gone ? ' — ' No, I left her whining ! '

In further explanation, it is proper to mention that on the or-
dering away of the detachments from the garrison, a notice was
given that only a certain number, and a very small one, of the
wives of the soldiers should be drafted to go along with them.
The selection was to be determined by lot. The number of
wives, — lawful wives too, according to all the statutes of God
and man — was known to be unusually large on account of the
long stay of the troops in this place. And the better to content
the latter, marriages under such circumstances are, at least, not
discountenanced by government. Families of children had
sprung up from many of those unions ; yet children and mothers
with the few exceptions just intimated, were to be separated
from fathers and husbands by the stern operation of the regu-
lation prescribed. Such separations are often final, the regi-
ments being ordered from one place to another, and seldom re-
manded to a garrison once quitted. Wives who are natives of
England are sometimes conveyed thither at the charge of gov-
ernment after the departure of their husbands ; but their lot
is little likely to be improved by such removal. The portion
of pay which is occasionally deducted from a soldier's pit-
tance for their support, is irregularly remitted, and for the most
part it soon ceases. Thus, women and children are thrown as
burdens on society. The difficuhies of gaining an honest sub-
sistence often force the former to shameful expedients, and the
latter are early hackneyed in the courses of iniquity.

64 GIBRALTAR.

The poor woman in the case recited, was the mother of two
or three children by the husband from whom she was torn.
There was, possibly, no discretionary power in the Colonel to
permit her accompanying the regiment ; and very possibly too,
her situation was not worse than that of many others in the
garrison. But he certainly had it in his power to soften the
language of refusal, and not add by his rudeness to the sorrow
of heart, of so desolate a fellow being.

These circumstances may serve to open up a new view of
the miseries of war, and one I apprehend, not often contemplated
in an estimate formed of its varied evils. It is difficult to frame
an exaggerated notion of all its sad consequences. How much
of wretchedness, and how much of crime flows from this foun-
tain of bitterness ! The policy of war requires soldiers to be
looked upon as mere machines. Yet they are men, with all the
affections and instincts belonging to the species. The social
connexions which the dictates of nature prompt them to form,
are liable to be dissolved at the mere will of men, called their
superiors. Passive obedience and non-resistance on the part of
the many to the orders of a few, are necessary to keep up a sys-
tem so foreign to the beneficent designs of Providence. Provi-
dence manifests one set of aims, human policy another j and
sophistry is put in requisition to justify the opposition. In the
case of marriage, — the soldier, it is alleged, knows that in en-
tering on that relation, he does it at the hazard of relinquishing the
sweets of such a union, when ordered from the station where it
has been formed. Again, the nature of the military service, it is
said, will not admit of women and children encumbering a camp,
or crowding on a column in march. Be it so; yet soldiers will
take wives if opportunity present, and wives will beget, and an
offspring be born not to gladden, save for a season, a parent's
eyes, — not to share in the privileges of paternal protection and
culture, — not to grow up to be blessings to the community —
but turned adrift on a cold and heartless world, unschooled in any
valuable knov/ledge, untrained to any useful art, devoid of the
principles of religion and morality, and ripening from their child-

AN AFTERNOON ON THE MOUNT. 65

hood up to the practice of crimes which will consign them one
day to die jail, the gallows, or a Botany Bay transport. Ah,
when will the eyes of men be opened to the enormides, physical

and moral, concentrated in the meaning of that one word,

WAR ! When shall they unite unsparingly to denounce it as
alike the sin and scourge of the human race, and widi heart and
hand overthrow the entire machinery, in the shape of the various
artificial and unnatural arrangements, which prepare and con-
duct its operations !

Jan. 14. — Sunday in Gibraltar seems more of a holiday
than a season of religious devotion. The military of all ranks
display their most showy apparel, and other classes of the inhab-
itants are tricked out in their best. For several hours in the
morning, there is a constant ebb and flow of the numerous
Catholic population to and from the Cathedral. Prayers are read
to the regiments in the open air. At the hour of eleven, there
is the usual thin but decorous attendance at the convent chapel.
But these dudes or forms once over, visits succeed, dinners are
given by the higher classes, amusements are sought by the lower ;
the streets, ramparts and beautiful walks of the Aimed a are
thronged ; and men, women and children hie equally in quest of
pleasure wherever it invites.

In the afternoon I took my pocket bible and spy glass, — mute
but not unedifying companions, — and ascended the path con-
ducting to the North Pinnacle. Here elevated above the diz-
zying crowds in the town below, the hum of whose voices and
movements rose but faintly on the ear, blended with a more grate-
ful, and ever solemn sound, — the low murmur of the ocean
waves as they fell on the distant rocky shore, — I found myself in
a seclusion quite as congenial to serious meditation as that which
Mirzah chose among the hills of Bagdad. The day was sunny
and serene. The {qw sails which were passing the Straits to
either sea, looked like bright snow-flakes spotting the blue ex-
panse. The scene in general was that of perfect repose. Not
a cloud flitted across the face of the heavens. Nature, through-
out her vast temple, seemed to consecrate a rest in homage of
9

66 GIBRALTAR,

that Being, who laid its firm foundations and spanned the majes-
tic structure with its glorious azure vault. I remained till the
sun went down below a golden horizon 5. and twilight began to
cast its shadows on the land and waters beneath., The African
promontory continued to reflect, awhile, the beams of parting
day, and behind me to the east and north, the snow-topped peaks
of the Andalusian sierras displayed yet longer their crowns of
glittering light.

I must not omit to record the efFect of a circumstance, in other
respects trivial, but considering the place and hour by no means
unimpressive ; — I mean the report of the evening gun. Just
when the last ray of the sun disappeared, its deep roar was
heard, wakening the slumbering echoes of the old mountain,
and long reverberating from crag to crag. From the lofty signal
station whence the report proceeded, a volume of smoke was
seen mounting in spiral wreaths till dissolving in the faint haze
which marked the approaching eve.

Roused by the signal, I prepared to descend. Casting a lin-
gering look on the magnificent natural objects around, to im-.
press more durably their mingled features of beauty and sublimity
on my memory, I left reluctantly the spot and made my way
downwards, in a frame of mind not unwarmed by the con-
templation of the power and glories of that Being who holds
the waters in the hollow of His hand, and whose is the strength
of the everlasting hills.

Jan. 16. — The arrival of the President's Message today,
excited quite a stir among the numerous quid nuncs of the gar-
rison. It came by the papers, brought by the Duke of York
steamer, direct from London, — the Courier and Chronicle
serving it up at full length. Portions of it looked a little squally,
quite enough to make the war-hawks begin to pucker their
plumage. The commercial and military residents of the Rock,
devoured the message with equal avidity. The copies being
few, numbers were unable to get sight of it, but they listened
with eagerness to the reports of others who were more fortunate ;
and its tone and sentiments lost nothing of emphasis by such

PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE. 67

second-hand communication. The subject was in everybody's
mouth. War, which was first spoken of as possible between
the two countries, w^as soon view^ed as probable ; and by night it
was agreed on by the knowing ones, to be a thing inevitable.

The glimpse w^hich 1 obtained of the message with some
difficulty, satisfied me that if those parts of it which touch on
the pending relations of the respective governments be not alto-
gether pacific, there was nothing in them to warrant the antici-
pation of a near and decided rupture. Besides, whatever might
be the President's private opinions and wishes, the question of
W'ar, so far as depends on the United States, must be deter-
mined, not as in England by the King, but by another branch
of the government than the executive. I have mentioned this
circumstance to a few of our good friends here of the other
side, but they seem little inclined to adopt my conclusion of the
improbability of a war. England, they allege, cannot brook the
language of the message if she would, and she ought not, if she
could. So, fight we must. These gentlemen very benevolently
protest, that they cherish no grudge against America, — not
they ; — but that they have been quite long enough inactive ;
and as they reck litde of the ' breeze ' in Portugal, they are
glad to ' snuff the approach' of battle from some other quarter.

Whatever such people may imagine, I apprehend the Bridsh
government, even with such a minister as Mr Canning at the
head, is too wise to enter the lists in her present condition,
without far stronger reasons than appear, with a power like that
of the United States. It would be preposterous to suppose that
any litigated points of policy between the two nations, — nations
that boast their love of justice, their liberality and wisdom, — -
could not be settled by amicable nego;tiation and compromise.
John Bull must hav^e learned from Iris wars of a thousand years,
— or he is a dotard beyond hope of correction and reform —
that a few commercial advantages, purchased at a heavy amount
of treasure and of blood, — as must be the consequence of the
happiest issue of a war, — are rather too dearly reached and
won. His ministers cannot, shut their eyes to the palpable diffi-

68 ' GIBRALTAR.

culties of conducting the machinery of government, and guard-
ing the complicated interests of his subjects, even in times of
peace. Six hundred millions sterling, added to the old national
debt of England since the French Revolution of 1789, are
somewhat too bulky a load to append to the iron harness of
war, in taking the field with a young, a spirited and unshackled
foe. John's shoulders are broad, the world knows ; but there
are limits to every physical power of endurance. The weight of
an ounce, added to a burden already enormous, was enough to
break the camel's back.

I do not suppose by any means that England has lost her
relish for war, but it cannot be doubted that her necessities will
compel her to be a litde more cautious in gratifying, for the fu-
ture, that costly appetite. If fiftytwo millions of pounds, col-
lected from every source of taxation on which she can lay
honest hands, are requisite for the support of her government
in a period of peace, — if her subjects groan, as they naturally
must, under such a burden in addition to an oppressive sys-
tem of tything, and eight millions wrung from their pockets an-
nually in the shape of poor rates, — if, with a starving insurrec-
tionary body of operatives in the heart of her kingdom, and
Ireland at her door, threatening intestine war, and already on
the brink of a volcano, — if, with these facts in view, her minis-
ters are but ordinarily wise, if they have but a modicum of com-
mon sense, England will weigh well the maxims of prudence,
before grappling in another struggle with the United States.
Such a struggle could not be popular, just now at least, with a
large portion of her own people. Their sympathies would at
once be enlisted on the side of the American Union. For they
cherish towards the United States feelings of brotherhood.
They view our people as ' bone of their bone, and flesh of
their flesh.' That there is a large class of such liberal minds
in the British nation, I abundantly satisfied myself during my
residence among them, although it followed shortly on the
conclusion of our second war. And nothing, surely, can have
since occurred to diminish the numbers of such well wishers.

ENGLAND AND THE UNITED STATES. 69

The general current of political events, the ties and interchan-
ges of commerce, that magical something called the spirit
of the age, which all understand if they may not define it, —
these' have tended to hring the great and intelligent mass
of either people to a hetter knowledge, a juster appreciation,
and more cordial esteem of each other. Men of narrow minds,
others of jealous vievvs, and some of vindictive feelings, — a
few of the latter, perchance even in the government of Great
Britain, — these, with gentlemen in the army and navy, (yet
not all,) may wish to try the tug of war one day again with the
North American Republic. Their language seems at times
to favor such an inference ; but, the lovers of peace have no
reason to apprehend a rupture between the two countries in the
present state of English affairs, and even of English feeling
generally considered.

I am supposing that the harmony of the respective nations
can only be disturbed, if at all, by hostile movements or a bel-
ligerent attitude, first assumed by Great Britain. Sure I am
that the cause, if it operate, must work in that quarter. The
policy of the United States is obviously pacific. It is her inter-
est to cultivate peace with all nations, and especially one with
whom her relations are so intimate as with England. But such
a peace she courts as rests on the solid basis of justice and re-
ciprocal good faith. She has learned to respect herself. She
has passed the feebleness of national childhood, and oudived the
immaturities of political youth. The time has elapsed when it
was wise in her to ask counsel of her fears. Though a nation
of yesterday, she has sprung into vigorous manhood, and whh
rapid step is advancing to her appropriate position in the fore-
most rank of civilized powers. Conscious of strength, with
tough-strung sinews and full-bounding blood, she seeks peace,
not because she dreads miscarriage or dishonor from war. Pu-
sillanimity is no word in her vocabulary. The spirit of her
motto is, — ' Tuta sub cegideJ

This consciousness of national strength, adequate to all the
purposes of self-defence, — a strength augmenting and develop-

70 GIBRALTAR. ,

ing from year to year, — while it places the American Union
in a condition to repel and avenge aggression, would be enough
to elevate the government and people above those paltry mo-
tives which sometimes stimulate a lust for war. A nation un-
known, or known but to be contemned, yet conscious of a cer-
tain measure of power, at least for purposes of annoyance, may
wish to signalize itself in combat, and gather some credit for
prowess. This is more likely, when, as sometimes it happens,
little could be lost, though nothing substantial might be won.
But the American Republic may be content to rest its reputa-
tion for valor on the efforts of the past. It fought itself into
being during the war of the Revolution, and since, it has borne
not ingloriously, the brunt of a contest with a Power which
claimed to be the mistress of the seas. It entered on the latter
struggle under every disadvantage. Unhappily, it was not a
war of the People, but of a party. The public mind was
divided respecting its expediency. The leading belligerents of
the old world had infused the leaven of conflicting partialities
among the citizens of the Republic ; and British and French
sympathies contended there, as elsewhere, for ascendency. Our
people could not escape the opposing biasses then abroad among
the nations of the civilized world. But those influences, thank
God, have passed forever away; and in their stead has sprung
up a feeling purely American, — a feeling deep and all-pervad-
ing,— which would render another war, should it occur, truly
national. For such a war would not depend on the caprice of an
individual, nor of a junta of advisers, such as constitute a prince's
cabinet ; but it could only be declared by the voice of the
American People, expressed by the proper organs of the national
will ; — a voice which would be withheld so long as the arts
that make for peace, and the gainful and humanizing pursuits of
commerce could be creditably cultivated — but which, so soon
as the vital interests of the Republic should be endangered,
would go forth with a thrilling emphasis from the ocean to the
lakes, and be echoed back from the remotest borders of the
Union.

ENGLAND AND THE UNITED STATES. 71

But to return to the late war ; the United States entered it
with crippled energies and irresolute spirits, — the puhlic mind
then perplexed and divided, — with an impoverished treasury, a
naked sea-board, armies that existed but on paper, and an infant
marine, that like the Hebrew striphng, was to set forth single-
handed, to the dread encounter with the GoHath of the main.
And how did the struggle eventuate? The exploits of that
little marine, and the memorable affairs by land of Plattsburgh,
Chippewa, and New Orleans, can declare. If the United
States be forced into another war with the mother country, as
some of the hotspurs in the British army and navy seem to
wish, the latter may find that for one stain wiped ofi' from their
flag, some additional ones, very possibly, may be added. For
they will encounter a people that would move as one man, a peo-
ple already augmented five millions since the termination of the
last conflict, a people whose shores are now lined with effective
fortresses, and whose military marine, instead of being confined
to a few frigates and war sloops, can display some line of battle
ships, than which none more potent ever floated upon the deep.
Americans would come to a new combat, — if come to it they
must, — with the inspiring recollections of the old one, — sensi-
ble that they have a name to maintain, and high pledges to re-
deem, as well as interests all essential to assert and defend.
Nor is it likely that the Republic will appear on the arena alone
and unsupported. A dispute which would embroil the two
countries, would, sooner or later, involve the feelings or in-
terests of some other power. The scars are too many and
deep, which England has inflicted on some of her continental
neighbors, to make them forget the old grudges which they owe
her, or let slip an opportunity which another war might present,
to help in plucking away the trident, which so long she wielded
to abuse. But be this as it may, the United States as a people
are already and intrinsically too strong to fear, too just to give
unwarranted umbrage, too wise to sacrifice their prosperity in
chase of the martial phantom, miscalled glory, yet too high-

72 GIBRALTAR,

minded when duty shall call, to suffer the sordid riches of the
most gainful traffic to outweigh, in their estimate, the bright
jewel of national honor, or that pearl of still greater price, their
dear-bought liberty.

The Presidential message has unexpectedly furnished me
with a fruitful theme. 1 recur to it only to say in addition, that
whatever might be thought by some, of its tone or prognostics,
none could refuse to accord to it the merit of a profound and
lucid state paper. The views which it presents, of the foreign
relations and domestic concerns of the United States, are such
as extort for the most part unqualified gratulation. They are
flattering to the pride of an American, who in the details of the
message, cannot but admire the enlightened and elevated patriot-
ism of the mind that composed and embodied it.

It gives me pleasure to hear of the respect which our flag
enjoys in the eyes of the neighboring Barbary power, — I
mean Morocco. Mr Mullowny, our intelligent and vigilant
Consul at that Regency, is now on a visit to this place ; and
from him I learn not only the continued ' pacific dispositions,'
to use the language of diplomatists, of the Moorish Divan, but
that at Tangiers, the flag of the United States ranks, as he calls
it, ' No. 1.' It can be no news to our people to be told that
this ascendency of the United States is founded solely in fear.
The strong naval force which our government maintains in the
Mediterranean, is an effectual curb on each of the Barbary
powers ; and by occasionally showing itself off their ports, it
gives a seasonable admonition of the means of redress, ever at
hand in case of insult or wrong, being inflicted on our com-
merce. In the absence of such a force, our ships would
be pillaged as mercilessly as of old. In confirmation of such
a disposition, I record an anecdote given me by Mr Mullowny.
About two years ago, our squadron not having appeared off
the Moorish coast for a considerable period, the Emperor in-
dulged a notion that it was wholly recalled. From some quar-
ter the insinuation had been whispered, that the United States,

MOORISH REGENCY. 73

discouraged by the cost and difficulties of keeping up a naval
armament on so distant a station, bad come to a resolution to
commission it no longer. The Emperor began to talk of a
restoration of his old relations with the United States on the
basis of tribute ; and intimated that, as his military stores
needed recruiting, the present of a hundred guns with their car-
riages, would be particularly timely and welcome. With such
a pledge of \he friendskip of our government, he was willing to
enter into closer amity with it, and lend his cruisers for the pro-
tection of our commerce ! Mr M. attempted to rally his high-
ness out of these fancies, and among other things, reminded
him that tribute w^as a word no longer known to die United
States in their relations with any powTr. His highness thought
it was a very good word, and suggested the expediency of re-
placing it in our books. In short, the emperor was at length
somewhat urgent, and his requests assumed the tone of dic-
tation.

Things were in this state, when one day, a couple of sail
were descried making up for Tangiers, which proved to be the
flag ship of the American squadron, with a companion. The
commander, when in the offing, communicated as usual with
the consul, and was soon apprized of the pending dispo-
sitions of the Regency. The ships were accordingly brought
to the mouth of the harbor, and official interrogatories were
immediately addressed to the court respecting its present
feelings, and proposed line of future policy towards the United
States. The note of preparation for business of another nature,
sounded meamvhile on board the noble ships ; and the know-
ledge of this, together with the tenor of the communications
transmitted to the emperor, wrought a speedy and vrondrous
change in his feelings and views. He professed the most entire
acquiescence in the policy of the United States, as interpreted
by the commodore and consul conjointly,— expressed his sat-
isfaction that the Americans were sufficiently able and wary to
look after their own trade ; and that, therefore, he would by no
means insist on the privilege of taking it under his fostering
10

74 GIBRALTAR.

wing in consideration of gratuities in any form. Waiving all
claim ever after on the last, his highness concluded with ex-
pressing his perfect /love' for the government and people of the
United States.

The negotiation being thus affectionately terminated, the
commodore took his leave of the imperial authorities of Tan-
giers, promising to renew his visit of respect to his highness,
very shortly. Ever since that time, by the occasional repetition
of these ceremonious calls off the harbor of Tangiers, particu-
larly for the purpose of inquiring his highness' health, the em-
peror has continued in very complacent mood ; and in place of
the topic of tribute to the amount of a hundred guns, delights to
discourse with the American consul on the virtue of national
friendship, and the prosperous commerce covered by the brave
flag of the United States.

Morocco has always a number of representatives on the
Rock, attracted hither by its commercial advantages and other
inducements of residence. I have noticed a few turbaned
Moslems of quite imposing appearance. Their tall and manly
forms were well set off by their showy robes, and they walked
the street with a step and look which betokened a conscious-
ness of superiority of some sort, and an air singularly degage.
Jews, I have already said, are numerous : from what T can learn,
they cannot fall much short of a thousand. They are an orderly,
sober and industrious class. In an earlier page, I mentioned
that many of them get their livelihood by the hardest of
toils, that of porters. Some of them, nevertheless, are well
known as merchants and brokers ; and the prosperity of one,
the reputed possessor of great wealth, is indicated by a mansion
which he has built in Commercial-square, which, for size and
cost, compared with other houses in Gibraltar, may be almost
called a palace. The ground in its neighborhood commands
the highest prices, and the site alone of the edifice is a posses-
sion of no small value.

As for rents, I know not where they are quoted at more ex-
travagant rates. The landlord of the King's Arms where I

RENTS — SUPPLIES. 75

lodge, informs me that he pays three thousand dollars per an-
num, for the hhe of his house ; and it is one, which, in point of
commodiousness, would not in Boston rank much, if any, above
third-rate inns. Shops of three floors, narrow and poorly
lighted, let in Church-street, for rents varying from one hun-
dred, to one hundred and forty dollars a month. This partly
explains the dearness of almost every article of personal or
family use, w^hich is vended in Gibraltar. Even British goods
<ire sold at prices greatly exceeding those at w^hich they may
be had in most of the American sea-ports. On some, the ad-
vance of cost is duplicate compared with that in the mother
country. Add to this, the expense of importation charged
on almost every article of food, — bread stuffs being brought
from England and often from places more remote, milk
and vegetables from Spain, beef from Barbary, mutton from
Genoa, wine from Portugal and other parts of the peninsula,
beer from British breweries, and even butter and cheese from
Biitish dairies, to say nothing of teas, coffee, and sugar from
other climes ; — everything must be paid for at rates always
high, and sometimes most exorbitant.

Water itself is brouglit to the Rock by the Andalusian peas-
antry ; the quantity collected in the public and private cisterns,
being altogether too scanty for the wants of the inhabitants. It
is carried about in small casks on donkeys, and sold from door
to door for^tvvo rials (25 cents) the load, or about fourpence
of Massachusetts currency, by the keg. Fuel, judged by an-
other rule, is also very dear, for its consumption is too sparing
for comfort. Though the weather has been prevailingly tem-
perate, — about as much so as the middle of a New England
May, — yet, two or three days have been sufficiendy keen
and blustering, at least for one of my nerves and habits. I
did not note the thermometer, but ice was formed of the thick-
ness of a dollar. During those days, the grates of the King's
Arms were somewhat grudgingly fed ; and either brisk exercise
without, or top coats worn when within, along wdth the hope of

76 GIBRALTAR.

kindlier skies in prospect, were the chief resources for imme-
diate relief and comfort.

The period of cold to which I refer, has been spoken of as
unusually severe for the climate ; bat having no meteorological
tables to consult, I am unable to verify the popular opinion.
Any one of common observation must have remarked a dispo-
sition among men to pronounce a trifling anomaly in the state
of the weather, as very extraordinary, if not unprecedented.
A spell, so called, — a little more hot or cold, dry or moist, — will
be gravely set down by people whose memories scarcely run
back beyond a month or a season, as a phenomenon that hap-
pens not above once in a dozen or a score of years. Tabular
figures, giving the ascertained ranges of the thermometer and
barometer, often furnish curious commentaries on such sage
opinions.

Having mentioned the article of milk as furnished from the
neighboring Spanish districts, I should except the quantity sup-
plied by the goats owned in the garrison ; and their number is
considerable. The latter ought not to be overlooked, as they,
have occasioned in my walks their share of amusement. These
goats are owned separately by private families, but each morn-
ing they are collected into a herd under the care of hinds ap-
pointed for their oversight, and driven forth to browse on the
mountain. Their leaps and gambols among its rugged acclivi-
ties, are frequently entertaining ; but the proofs which they give
of docility and intelligence, are chiefly remarkable. They
seem to have instinctively come under the military discipline
that reigns throughout the garrison.

About sunrise, two or three goatherds set forth to collect
them, beginning at one end of the town and proceeding thro'igh
the principal streets, to issue at the opposite gates. The animals
are found self-stationed at the doors of the little courts of their
masters' dwellings, or where the houses are situated down lanes,
or built upon the elevated terraces considerably removed from
the main thoroughfares, the docile creatures place themselves

ANIMAL SAGACITY- BOOKS. 77

in due season at the corners of the passages, ana patiently wait
for the coming up of the main body. When it arrives, they
drop in of their own accord, and move onward with the increas-
ing mass, till the space without the walls is gained, when they
separate and take care of themselves for the rest of the day.
Towards evening, and seasonably before gun-fire, they form
themselves again in battalion, and commence the line of march
back to the garrison. The order and gravity they display in
pacing their slow, homeward steps, and the quaint look of the
motley herd as they are seen entering through the massive
gates, and deep mural passages of the fortress, are whimsical
enough, especially in contrast with the objects around. But
onward they move under their trusty captains, all unconcerned
by the din and bustle about them, till arriving at their respective
quarters or neighborhoods, when the matter of mock solemnity
ceases. Then, every one skips from the ranks to the well
known gate, and darts down this dark alley, or leaps up that
narrow street-stairway, glad to repay with their milky stores,
the shelter sought in their comfortable nightly- hyres.

There may seem to be no natural connexion between this
species of animals and the race of authors and booksellers,
(save on some such hypothesis as Dromo's in the novel, who
suggested that betwixt goats and philosophers an affinity must
subsist from the circumstance of both wearing long beards,) but
be the case as it may, I am reminded as my notes on Gibraltar
are drawing to a close, that I have said nothing of the state of
literature in the town generally. This topic, however, may be
despatched in a few words. Literary tastes and pursuits seem
quite foreign to the Rock. Of booksellers' shops, there is not
one within the walls. Here and there a shelf may be found
in the corner of some miscellaneous warehouse, where a ^e\Y
dictionaries, hornbooks, classical readers, and copies of common
prayer are kept, but nothing else. Occasionally, a novel, or
the last poem, or a number of a review or magazine, straggles
into the garrison, but even these are scarcely noticed. There

78 GIBRALTAR.

is a Commercial Library, it is true, but it was established, or
certainly is retained, as a mere matter of form, — the books
being ' wisely kept for show ; ' and the few residents who re-
sort to it, are attracted thither by the newspapers which are
spread daily upon the table. As for literature as a topic of
conversation, it appears to be seldom introduced. In fine,
however valuable Gibrakar may be as an emporium of other
merchandise, the bibliopolists of Pater Noster Row, must find
it a wretchedly poor mart for the disposal of their commodities.
There is a newspaper published here, but it does no great honor
to Gibraltar. It is quite a Lilliputian curiosity, being printed on
a small octavo demi-sheet, and serving up only some meagre
British news taken from the ministerial mouth-piece, along
with weekly lists of arrivals and departures of shipping.

On the whole, Gibraltar, aside from its military constructions,
and the grand natural features of the surrounding scenery, has
not much to offer to interest a stranger. A day or two's obser-
vation of things is enough to satisfy him ; and if his stay be
much longer it becomes wearing. How the inhabitants con-
trive to live here from year to year, I scarcely know. The
grace of contentment is what few of them, I believe, can lay
any claim to. But with the military, the stern will of their su-
periors, and with the mercantile population the love of gain, are
the master motives which bind them to a spot virtually as insu-
lated and confining as a sejour on Pitcairn's island.

I should be ungrateful not to add in this place, that in several
families where I have been received, 1 have not only found
warm hearts but polished and agreeable society. The rule
which a traveller should observe, not to allude too pointedly to
families whose courtesies may be extended to him, is liable to
some exceptions ; and I feel myself constrained to allow one on
the present occasion. Under the hospitable roof of Mr H — ,
I have passed a few flying hours, the remembrance of which will
be ever cherished. It was there that the ' maladie du pays,'
which had begun to prey upon my spirits, was sure to be chased

SOCIETY. 79

away. Mr H. is a gentleman of great persona] worth ; and in
addition to the pleasure of his society, the refined mind, engaging
conversation and accomplished manners of Mrs H. — a lady
who has moved in the choice circles of the metropolis of New
England, — offered attractions to their house which could not
but draw and rivet.

The thought of bidding adieu to such friends is indeed pain-
ful ; but for all other considerations, the prospect of quitting
Gibraltar is unmixed with regret, and I hail my near departure
from the Rock in the light of a pleasant emancipation, ^'^

CHAPTER IV

PASSAGE UP THE MEDITERRANEAN

British Packet. — Shore of Algiers. — Features of Sardinia. — Cagliari. — Tru-
pani. — Scenes of the Vth Book of the ^Eneid. — The vEgades. — Pantel-
laria. — Second View of its Beauties. — Appearance of Goza. — First Glimpse
of Malta. — Arrival in the Grand Harbor. —City and Suburbs. — The Par-
Jatorio. — English and American Flag-ships. — Ceremony of Hoisting their
Colours. — Quarantine Eslablishment and Regulations. — Strictures. — Ob-
servations on Small Pox. — Sketch of a Lazaretto. — Removal to La Va-
letta.

At Sea. Jan. 21. — It is now four days since I left the
Straits, and commenced my voyage toward Malta. I embarked
in a British Packet which touched at Gibraltar to exchange
mails. It was an opportunity which I was glad to improve.
The accommodations on board are good. The Packet has the
equipment of a war-brig, and bearing a commission from the
Admiralty, is allowed to carry a pendant. She proves a fine
sailer and is worked by a large complement of hands.

The commander, who is a first rate officer, is not deficient in
general information. Unfortunately, his mind is a bundle of
prejudices, which may partly be explained by his Scottish ex-
traction, but it would have been well if his opportunities of
observation had served to modify them. His nadonal predilec-
tions are amusingly strong ; and as for the United States, he
has but a small stock of affection to dispose of in that quarter.
I have gathered enough from him to find that in common with
some others of his countrymen, he would be quite as well
satisfied if the American Union were somewhat feebler, less

SHORE OF ALGIERS. 81

prosperous and enterprising ; if its population were but half its
present amount ; if its marine were less spirited and valorous,
and its commerce should be confined to the bays and rivers of
the Republic, instead of extending itself over every sea. He
pays the best tribute which a foreigner can be expected to render
to the United States, — next to a cordial liking of our national
character and institutions, — namely, a jealousy of our growth
and spreading influence as a people. As on the other hand, I
am not much disposed to suffer anything to be subtracted from
the well earned pretensions of my native country to respect, and
as with all my admiration for what is truly great and noble in
England, I do not profess an abounding love for its government
and policy,* — the captain and myself have already had some
colloquial sparring, which, however, is conducted con amove,
and generally discussed over a social glass of old Port.

Our voyage thus far has been propitious. We lost sight of
the mountains of Grenada, the morning after our departure
from the Straits. The sea is enlivened by many passing sails.
Of the larger of these vessels, a full third prove to be those of
the United States. Today a rugged coast, not unpicturesque
in its blue waving outline, has been discerned on our right. It
is the shore of Algiers. One while, we had run down pretty
near it, quite as much so, indeed, as we could wish. It would
not be a desirable shore to be stranded upon, nor, should such
an untoward event happen to us, would the people be the most
hospitable into whose hands we might chance to fall. Yet, the
ancient territory of the warlike Numidians, the land of Massi-
nissa and Jugurtha, could not be contemplated with entire in-
difference. A glance being enough, we are hoping for a change
of wind which may admit of a different shaping of our course,
and we shall be well content to take a last look, with the parting
sun, of the territories of the modern Bluebeard.

* It will be remembered that the above was written when Mr Canning

was at the head of the British Government. No one will dispute that he

was a great man and a consummate statesman ; but never probably since the

days of Lord North, was there a minister less friendly to the United States.

82 MEDITERRANEAN

Jan.2(S. — Gulf of Cagliari. Sardinia. The Medi-
terranean is a pleasant sea to navigate, from the numerous
shores which it offers to greet the eye of a voyager. The
contrast with the monotony of an Atlantic passage, is very
striking. Yesterday we came within sight of Sardinia. By
noon, we had approached the island sufficiently close to discern
the features of its coast with considerable minuteness. They
were by no means attractive. The country wore, for the most
part, an uncultivated and even savage aspect; and our observa-
tion embraced many leagues of shore, as its boldness allowed
us to sail, for several hours, very near it.

The country was chiefly covered with wild dwarf shrubs, of
a kind which I could not exactly determine. A few towers,
round or square, similar to those which I had remarked upon
the Spanish shore, were scattered like distant sentinels along the
coast. Standing so uniformly separate, they rather added to the
solitariness of the scene. We looked long, in vain, for some
inhabitants. At length, two men were seen wending their way
along a narrow foot path, through the brown underwood,
towards one of those lone towers. They were armed, and
though dressed in shaggy sheepskins, their appearance must
have greatly belied them, if they were not more savage than
the animals in whose spoils they were clothed. We watched
them attentively as they drew nigh the rude structure which
blocked their way. There was no door to it, nor any com-
munication visible from below. Two or three grated windows
were all the openings seen above. As they came up, a ladder,
apparently of ropes, was let down by some person in waiting,
from one of the windows, by which they mounted and gained
ingress to their grim looking abode. The ladder was then
drawn back and nothing more was seen of them.

This circumstance would incline us to augur indifferently re-
specting the state of general confidence and security among the
inhabitants at least of the coast. Indeed, if we may credit the
few travellers who have penetrated the interior of the island, a
scarcely better condition of things can prevail there. Sardinia

SARDINIA. 83

with its fruitful soil and temperate climate, and though placed in
a position most eligible for trade and commerce, languishes
under a wretched government, and its population is hardly ad-
vanced beyond the pale of barbarism. Known to the ancients,
colonized by the Carthaginians, subsequently possessed by the
Romans, and still later occupied by the chivalrous Saracens, —
a dependence, moreover, for generations on a respectable crown
of continental Europe, and situated under the very eye of the
civilized w^orld, — it continues and seems destined to remain in
a state of insignificance, poverty and depression. The vice-
regal court, an ignorant clergy, and a few dissolute individuals
among the noblesse, drain the soil of its scanty profits ; and
how small these must be, may be inferred from the fact, that
the total exports from the island do not exceed half a million
sterling. Meanwhile banditti, we are told, roam the mountains
and infest extensive wastes ; and the honest part of the peas-
antry are obliged to arm in self-defence, to content them-
selves with the precarious means of bare subsistence, and, —
too far from the protection of the feeble, indolent, and licen-
tious court of the Viceroy, — they know for the most part no
laws but of their own formation.

Let us view the subject in another light. Sardinia, with all its
geographical advantages, and agricultural and commercial capa-
bilities, actually embraces a territorial surface about one fourth
larger than the state of Massachusetts. Whereas the latter,
with every disadvantage of soil and climate, numbers a popula-
tion exceeding by one fourth the total of the inhabitants of this
naturally favored isle. In point of intelligence, wealth and en-
terprise ; and in the circumstances of social condition, there can
be no comparison between the two people. Yet the free, en-
lightened and flourishing inhabitants of Massachusetts, constitute
but a twentyfourth part of the entire population of the United
States, whose earliest colonial setdements date back scarcely
beyond the short period of two centuries, — instead of the more
than two thousand years during which Sardinia has been oc-
cupied. Such is the difference wrought by a government

84 MEDITERRANEAN.

established, as with us, on just principles, originating and admin-
istering wise and equitable laws, poised and sustained by public
sentiment, and venerated by those over whose interests it
watches with a fostering and paternal solicitude.

Alas, for the poor Sard ! What he was, when visited by the
Carthaginian navigator, he remains substantially at the present
day. Neither civilization with its lights and blessings, — neither
the sciences nor arts, — nor yet Christianity, with its softening,
refining and beneficent influences, — privileges which have
been scattered bountifully over many other lands, — seem to
have exerted or diffused any permanent general good on this
unfortunate islander. To all intents and purposes, he continues
severed from the fellowship of civilized nations.

The capital of the island is situated at the bottom of the bay
of Cagliari. It bears the same name. The bay itself is truly
superb. Whole fleets might ride here in safety, in all kinds of
weather. We were standing across it with a gentle breeze this
morning, when the wind died away, and currents have been
setting us gradually inward. We are surrounded with vessels
waiting like ourselves for the kindly evening zephyr. We can
determine little else than the site of Cagliari, the town being
chiefly built low, and the view of it being screened by a small
island called Pietra-Laida. On consulting a description of it,
I find nothing to tempt the wish of a nearer approach, much
less a visit. The town is said to have few pretensions to the
name of a capital, the streets being miserably paved, and not
more than twenty feet in width. The superstition, or perhaps
piety of the inhabitants, is indicated by the number of churches
and religious houses contained in a town of somewhat less than
thirty thousand people ; of the former there being thirtyeight,
and of monasteries and nunneries no less than twentythree.

Cagliari is worthy of notice from the spirited stand made by
its inhabitants against the government in 1796. Oppressed by
a grievous load of taxes, and encouraged by the progress of the
French Revolution, they rose in insurrection, and caused the
Piedmontese Viceroy, with all the individuals of his court, to

THE iEGADES. 85

be sent off the island. Other towns and districts followed the
example of the Cagliarites. The result was, that after two
years of contention, the King granted a general pardon, declared
that the Cortes should assemble at least once in ten years, and
confirmed, nominally, all the ancient laws, customs, and privi-
leges of the inhabitants.

Jan. 28. — Off Favignana. On the evening of the 26th,
the wished for breeze filled our canvas, and the Packet bore
away gallantly on her course. The next day we made the
coast of Sicily ; but it was then too remote to furnish other
matter of observation. At dawn this morning, we were up with
the island, — Capo di Cofano being a Httle ahead of us ; — and
to me it was a pleasing reflection that even Palermo, (' la Felice ')
was scarce ten leagues distant to the east. But our course lay
in another direction. We bore down for the jEgades, a trio of
islets situated off the main coast near Trapani. Though terri-
torially small, they are not without historic interest, having made
some figure in elder times, particularly in the first Punic war.
Maritimo saluted us first ; then Levanso, with its bold rugged
headlands ; and next Favignana, under the lee of which we are
glad to shelter ourselves from adverse blasts. The bay of St
Giacomo now opens before us. We are standing in under our
close reefs, and hope soon to ride in smoother waters than those
which we have buffeted the last few hours.

As we have pursued our course, Trapani on our left has been
an object of interest. Its spires and turrets, the tower of the
venerable cathedral, the castle on Sigia Point, and the tapering
light house on Columbara Rock have been plainly visible. The
town is built at the foot of Mount St Julian, the ancient Eryx,
an eminence of lofty and striking form, which is crowned with
dark and massive structures. Among these we distinguish a
tower of singular prominence near the western angle, and at the
other extremity, an old Saracenic castle whose batriements have
survived the wastes of centuries. From the Mount a noble
aqueduct is seen stretching toward Trapani, conveying thither

86 MEDITERRANEAN.

the virgin waters of the springs of St Julian. In the neighbor-
hood are various religious liouses, besides villas and cottages ; of
the former we identify by the chart those of St Anna, St Helena
and St Francisco. But by far the grandest is the Carmelite
convent of the celebrated Madonna of Trapani, an institution of
great wealth from the benefactions of numerous devotees. ^^

This Trapani, (anciently Drepanura,) is memorable in classic
story. It was here, if we may credit the Mantuan bard, that
^neas landed, when bearing up from the Lilybceum promonto-
ry, — per ' vada dura * * ^ saxis ccecis,'' — he sought a haven
for his fleet, and his aged sire found the welcome rest of a
sepulchre.

Hinc Drepani me portus et illatdbilis ora
Accipit.

It was here that on his return from Carthage on the following
year, he disembarked afresh in sight of Acestes who stood,

excelso miratus vertice montis

Adventum, sociasque rates,

and then hasted to welcome him with a rude but overflowing
hospitality. Here too he presented his votive ofierings on the
tomb of Anchises, and celebrated the funera] games — ^ solem-
nesqne ordine pompns,'' — in honor of the old man's memory.
And on the neighboring strand, that catastrophe occurred, — the
burning of four of the hero's galleys — when the Trojan matrons,
instigated by Iris, weary moreover of wanderings and allured
by the soft clime and fruitful shores of Sicily, attempted the en-
tire destruction of the little squadron. Trapani, in short, with its
immediate neighborhood of land and flood, enjoys the honorable
distinction of being the scene of the incidents described in an en-
tire Book, namely, the Fifth, of the jEneid.

In surveying this * local habitation ' assigned to some of the
most beautiful creations of ancient poesy, the fancy of a classi-
cal amateur is apt to give substance and reality to the crea-
tions themselves, and to forget that they belong to the list of
idealities. The face of natural objects being supposed to re-

SCENES OF THE iENEID. 87

main unworn and unchanged since the periods of which the

muse has sung, serves to confirm the illusion. The position of

Columbara Rock determines the scene of the naval games :

Est procul in pelago saxum spumantia contra
Littora ; —

Of course, it was the station on which the oaken signal was
erected ; and as we sailed over the waters which surround it, I
was willing to believe that there Gyas and Cloanthus, with their
ardent competitors, cut the green wave in the emulous race.
And as I looked on the adjacent shores, fancy was at no loss to
determine the sites of the other sports. Within yonder amphi-
theatre, of hills thought I, Euryalus and Salius, Dares and En-
tellus, disputed the pedestrian and pugilistic prizes ; on the
sandy beach hard by, stood the mast of Sergestus' shattered
galley, and over it fluttered the poor dove, fated victim of Eu-
rytion's skill in archery. On that smooth plain beyond, young
Priam, and blooming Atys, and the Dardan hero's son, mar-
shalled their squadrons of horse in mimic fight. The pictures,
at least, of those stirring scenes as sketched in my younger
days, rose upon my imagination in all their freshness ; and
every object around seemed to speak of the things suggested,
not as falling within the province of fiction, but as constituting a
class of sober realities.

But Trapani is interesting from another, and a solemn remin-
iscence. Off Sigia tower, already named, lie several abrupt
rocks, called ' I scogli di mal consiglio.' They are so denom-
inated from the circumstance of being the reported place where
Palmerio of Trapani and John of Proclda, with their fellow con-
spirators, debated and planned the tragic Sicilian vespers in 1282.
The appearance of these rocks, near which we sailed, and which
were examined with the aid of the ship's glass, offered little to
justify the tradition. They are low, craggy and exposed. Still
it is certain the Trapanites were very zealous in the affair, and
received Peter of Arragon and Constance his queen with lively
demonstrations of rejoicing.

MEDITERRANEAN.

While noting the hints and impressions suggested by the pre-
ceding objects, we have entered the bay of St Giacorao. It
was a considerable naval station with the Romans, and is still
an eligible rendezvous for a fleet. Favignana is generally low,
but is marked by an eminence of singular figure, which,
crossing it centrally, has caused the island to be compared to a
colossal bird with spread pinions. On the highest point and
very conspicuous, stands the castle of St Catherine, which is
said to be impregnable unless reduced by famine. It possesses
full command of the town and harbor. There is a smaller fort
situated on a hillock near the port of St Giacomo. Its princi-
pal use is to confine a part of the gangs of wretches annually
condemned by the tribunals of Sicily.

Favignana is a valuable litde island, much superior to its sister
jEgades. It constitutes a marquisate; the revenue of the title
being derived from its tunny and anchovy fisheries, its quarries
of stone, and the sale of sheep, goats, grain and fruit. It has a
respectable town, St Leonardo, which comprises a population
estimated at twentythree hundred souls. The isles of Maritimo
and Levanso, on the other hand, are poor and thinly inhabited.
Their chief value consists in the stunted woods with which they
abound. Great numbers of fagots are made up from them an-
nually and sent to Marsala and Trapani for sale.

Jan, 29. — Off Pantellaria. Since yesterday we have
contrived to beat up, — no thanks to the winds, — to the neigh-
borhood of this pretty isle. It lies in middle channel be-
tween Sicily and Africa, — Marsala being twenty leagues distant
at the north, and Cape Bon in Tunis as many to the south.
We have left the jEgades seventyfive miles behind us. It
seemed that in parUng with them, we were taking leave of Eu-
rope. Indeed, the winds were one while apparently determined
to drive us, like the Trojan band, on the African shore ; where
we were not sure of finding a second Carthage, nor a gracious
reception within its walls under favor of some beauteous queen.
The scudding clouds of the morning veiled every object but the

PANTELLARIA. 89

wild waves which encompassed us. Towards noon they were
partially dissipated, and Pantellaria was seen lifting its dark cone
above the foaming main. We have been gradually gaining
upon it, till at length we are making short tacks near the mouth
of its litde harbor. ^^

My eyes are thus entertained by a new set of objects, and
they are exceedingly regaling. The island, though anciently
volcanic, presents on the side which we behold, a scene of sur-
passing verdure. Gardens, fields, orchards and vineyards, in-
tersected by green hedges and spotted here and there with
habitations partly embowered, clothe the gende slopes of some
sweet hills whose feet are bathed by the briny billows. To-
wards the centre of the island a bolder elevation is perceived,
crowned with a double volcanic apex, whose fires, long extin-
guished, once darted showers of cinders which have since
spread fertility and beauty around its ample base.

The town, too, of Pantellaria looks well enough from the
water. Perhaps on a nearer inspection, it might strike less
favorably, but I am only describing things as they appear. The
houses are mostly flat-roofed, and covered with tiles of a light
yellow. Numbers of them are surmounted with little domes,
coloured green, which, united to some other peculiarides, give
them a fanciful but not unbecoming appearance. These, how-
ever, are more generally appendages to the villas which over-
look the town. There is a due proportion of churches, and the
walls of the Capuchin establishment are very conspicuous. But
the most distinguished object is the castle with its square keep,
swelling its disproportionate bulk above the centre of the town.
Besides this, the harbor is guarded by small batteries erected on
the two points of St Leonard and Santa Croce.

Pantellaria has had need of stronger defences. Its proximity
to the Barbary shore has exposed it to many predatory attacks
from piratical galleys. The most disastrous descent was that of
the celebrated Corsair Dragut, the successor of Barbarossa on
the throne of Algiers. He made good his landing, sacked the
12

-r

90 MEDITERRANEAN.

castle, and carried no less than a thousand of the inhabitants into
slavery.

We have stood in close enough to obtain a view of the inhab-
itants. They are an indolent people, at least if we may judge
from the many saunterers abroad. Their dress and swarthy
features, of a peculiar cast, attracted attention. As we bore up
towards the mole, a crowd pressed thither, among which we
distinguished a few women, and two or three figures of men
superior to the general mass, whose short blue cloaks, worn^ « Za
Skilien^ gave them the air of cavaliers. On the esplanade of
Santa Croce a knot of soldiers was gathered. I know not what
they took us to be, as our colours were not flying, and through
our opened ports the wide mouths of two or three brass cannon,
if observed, may have looked rather suspicious. But certes, we
disclaimed all fellowship with their Barbary neighbors, and ap-
proached them with most pacific dispositions. They scrutinized
us, nevertheless, quite as narrowly as on the other hand we re-
connoitred them ; and it was not till we wore ship and put about
on another tack, that the peering groups were seen slowly to
disperse. The captain traces in the look of Pantellaria a re-
semblance to Montserrat in the West Indies, — an island which
he visited in earlier life, and which he describes as characterized
by romantic beauty. I must not omit to note a little circum-
stance which just lent a new feature of interest to the scene.
As we stood gazing at the central mountain, around the summit
of which a volume of vapor was rolled, the mist gradually undu-
lating, assumed the form and appearance of curling smoke.
This, wreathing upward from the rim of the old crater, looked
like an eruption from its very bosom ; and had the volcano
been existing, its sooty steams could have looked no differently.
The resemblance struck equally the captain and myself, and ex-
torted a simultaneous expression of gratification and surprise.

The town of Pantellaria numbers a population of four thou-
sand. About two thousand more inhabitants are dispersed
elsewhere over the island. The circumference of the coast

PANTELLARIA. 91

is thlrtyfour miles. The principal products of the isle are wine,
fruits and cotton. It is said that of grain there is not more pro-
duced annually than is sufficient for consumption during three
months. For the remaining supplies of this necessary of life,
the inhahitants depend on Sicily. The raisins are pronounced
some of the finest and cheapest in the Mediterranean. Above
the enameled fields and gardens which, I have said, clothe the
gentle eminences back of the town, are the olive grounds.
The plantations are numerous and are arrayed in lively green.
Higher than these we discern a woody belt, which on turning to
my authorities I find to be composed chiefly of chesnuts, bastard
oaks and caper trees. Then the mountain steep above, with
its old sombre peak, remaining unchanged through the revolu-
tion of ages, and the island itself sitting unmoved amid the wild
warring waves which now embosom it, — these altogether offer a
scene most striking in its combinations of loveliness and grandeur.

The island anciently had a different look, 1 mean in the
matter of loveliness. Seneca mentions it as a rough and barren
spot in his day. It is probable that the volcano had not then
been long extinguished, and its fertile soil and natural resources
have since been mostly created, or perhaps developed. Pan-
tellaria was the Cossyra of antiquity. Its history records varied
fortunes. Like many nobler possessions it has passed succes-
sively under the sceptre of the masters of the world, sharing the
immediate fate of Sicily almost uniformly. At present, it is a
dependence on that crown, and belongs with the title of princi-
pality to the house of Requisino. It formed for a long time, a
portion of the dowry of the queens of Sicily. It is only arbi-
trarily denominated a part of Europe, as it lies quite as near to
the African continent, and if the lords of the old, or rather the
civilized world, dwelt on the other shoj-e, they would consider it
doubtless <ts an appendage of that quarter of the globe.

Jan. 30. 1 P. M. I have just descended from deck after
enjoying one of the sweetest spectacles which ever blessed my
eyes. It was another gaze of the verdant and picturesque
beauties of Pantellaria, — ^ a long, and alas, a parting gaze. But

92 MEDITERRANEAN.

previously to sketching these, as they appeared under other and
more advantageous circumstances than on the antecedent day,
I must go back and note a few preliminary incidents.

The gale last night was very surly. The friendly island
did all it could to shelter us, but the sea and wind tossed us
most ungraciously. The ship's timbers creaked with many
a rude shock, and the sweeping blasts whistled through our
blocks and shrouds. What with tacking and drifting, — standing
off and on, nautically speaking, — we fell considerably to the
leeward; and when morning broke, struggling to look forth
from under its cloudy mantle, Pantellaria was effectually hid
from us as though it had foundered, and not we, beneath the
angry floods.

About sunrise, the storm subsided. ' The heart of the gale
was broke,' as a tar, soused with the plashing spray, was heard
to express himself. The sea, very differently from an Atlantic
roll, soon abated, and prepared to compose itself to rest. At
eight, we made sail and once more hove up for the * bonnie' isle,
which lay directly in our proper track. The baffling state of
the winds, which having spent themselves in one point, seemed
irresolute from what quarter next they should agree to breeze,
kept us back for a while in our course. Sailing gradually to
the east, at length Pantellaria we again descried, looking like a
green sea-gem in a setting of blue. The sun shortly after burst
forth with splendor, as if to beam a complacent smile on that
sweet isle.

And how fair it looked when at last we reached it, and glided
once more along its emerald shores ! The verdure under a
sunny sky assumed a deeper and livelier tint, and vegetation
wore a richness far surpassing its appearance on the day pre-
ceding. Orchards, in the full pride of bloom, displayed their
thousand varied hues. In every garden, the almond was seen
profusely decked with its damask flowers. The sweetest
perfumes were wafted from the expanded blossoms of the
citron and orange ; and all nature luxuriated under the balmy
influences of a soft and roseate morn. The waves now reduced

PANTELLARIA. 93

to gentle undulations, as they stole to the shore — neaved by a
zephyr which rather sighed than breathed — broke upon its
margin in snowy circlets, like chains of 'orient pearl.'

1 am not expatiating on mere fancied beauties. The descrip-
tion which I attem.pt is poor compared with the genuine impres-
sions which the scene beheld, spontaneously called up. We
were often scarce a bow-shot from the shore, for the deep waters
around it permitted so nigh an approach in perfect safety.
No one position on land perhaps could have been so favorable
for the view, as none would probably have combined the variety
of features which we contemplated in our near and leisurely
passage by the island.

The town being built at the northwest extremity of Pantellaria
was approached first. Sailing slowly past it, and its pretty Al-
meda which I had previously overlooked, we observed the
population as on the former occasion, — some busy, but others
and the most who were abroad, strolling with a careless air, or
seated in social intercourse under the shade of flowering trees.
In the vineyards and olive groves, some peasantry were em-
ployed ; and along the highways leading from the gates of the
town towards Cala Tramontana and St Gaetano, muleteers and
pedestrians of either sex, were occasionally passing to and fro,
giving liveliness to the general scene. As we rounded the
northern point of the harbor and left the town, the landscape
varied, but only to exhibit fresh charms. The monastery of St
Theodore looked down upon us from its green and woody ele-
vation. Successive cots, romantically situated, came momentarily
into view. Several little vales of exquisite loveliness put in their
claims to notice. Occasionally we could see a limpid brook,
stealing through the fresh grass to mingle with the waters which
bathed these fairy shores. The country, in short, was spread
out as a vast garden, divided into numberless enclosures, the
circumscribed limits of which denoted the value and fertility
of the smallest spots. Altogether it was a scene of enchant-
ment. The isle of Cythera could not look fairer.

94 MEDITERRANEAN.

But my description hitherto must be considered as confined
to the landscape which first met my eye. It embraced a con-
siderable part of the island, but I would not have it supposed to
be applicable to all of Pantellaria. On the contrary, the east
and south shores consist chiefly of steep and inaccessible cliffs,
with basaltic caves at their base ; and the north, down which
we sailed, is lined in part with a sterile and rocky front. The
coast in several places 1 found seamed with old lava ; and in
one spot it rises into a broad high bluff, composed of black
walls of that material. The town would naturally be built on
the most eligible site ; of course it would not be on that side
by which the ancient streams of lava usually flowed. The
progress of further settlement and cultivation would be directed
by the fertility and fitness of soil and place. Thus it is that
the section of the island whose features of loveliness I have de-
scribed, was chosen for habitancy and has been decked by the
arts of husbandry ; and enough of it there appears, to yield a
luxurious tribute to meet the wants and tastes of all its present
population.

The other shores, nevertheless, if insusceptible of culture, are
striking from their boldness. On the north the twin-bays of Gala
Tramontana, and Gala Levante, are extremely picturesque.
They are not the only objects in that neighborhood deserving
notice.

But I must bid adieu to this enticing spot. Pantellaria we
are now leaving behind us. One look more at the beauteous
isle, and it will be shut out forever from my sight. But its
image will not fade. It will live in my memory ever fresh as its
own perennial verdure.

11 P. M. All 's bright. A favorable breeze fills our sails,
and the ship speeds merrily along. I have been enjoying
a walk upon the deck, yielding to the exhilaration of feeling
which the anticipation of new objects of interest, so soon to be
witnessed, naturally inspires. By dawn we shall make the
Maltese isles, and salute the ancient heritage of the knights of
St John.

GOZA. 95

Jan. Si. — Expectation was not disappointed. At peep of
dawn I was roused by tlie ever welcome sounds of the over-
hauling of the chain-cable, the cry of heave ho, and the heavy
trampling of mariners on deck, engaged in preparations which
were indicative of a speedy termination of the voyage. I was
not long in escaping from my berth, and putting myself in a con-
dition to mount the companion way in order to note what was
observable. The cool breeze of morning was refreshing to
inhale. The bark clipped the green waves like a swallow upon
the wing. The last stars of night had not ceased their faint
twinkling : but the blush of morning was brightening and red-
dening in the east.

On our right at the distance of a few furlongs, a rough shore
was discerned. It was the island of Goza, the westernmost
point of which we had just touched. It lay low and looked
bare. As light advanced, a line of wall was remarked, para-
peting the coast. Towers here and there were perceived, —
soon, a few scattered tenements, and then a small village^ very
compact. From the casements of a few of the houses, the
lights of some early stirrers were seen glimmering through the
gray of the morning.

At length the landscape was all uncovered ; and the impres-
sion it produced, I must say, was disappointing. Scarce a tree
could be observed, and the general livery of the earth was
brown. Buildings standing singly, or grouped in hamlets, were
dispersed rather plentifully ; but they resembled military posts,
as though intended either as watch towers or barracks. They
were built with low, solid walls, of a dingy species of stone.

In an hour or two more, we opened a little strait. It was
that of Cumino, in the midst of which is the isle of the same
name. This strait, about a league broad, separates Goza from
Malta. Along the latter coast our track then lay. Near the
upper extremity of this and looking toward Cumino, the bleak
hill Bengemma was seen, — a spur of which encloses a rocky dell,
said to open into several caves forming the grotto of Calypso.
For it must be noted, that Malta or the old Melita, was the

9G MEDITERRANEAN.

reputed domain of that famed nymph in times of which bards
have sung. As the muse has embalmed her beautiful name,
and tradition has given her this island for her home, and yonder
grotto for her haunt, it was curious to reflect on that fertility of
poetic invention which could transform a rock into a Cyprian
elysium, and deck it with fountains and bowers, and flowers and
verdure. ^^

Cruising to the east, it was not long before we crossed the
mouth of an inlet which indented a deep shore of graceful cur-
vature. Its bosom was dotted with a few black rocks, round
which the waters now peacefully slept. This was the bay of
San Paolo, within which the apostle Paul is said to have been
wrecked, when the ship which bore him encountered the * two
seas,' — or cross currents, — spoken of in Acts, and was broken
by ' the violence of the waves.' As I looked upon it, the sun was
rising in cloudless effulgence ; and I bethought me of that Light to
gladden the gentiles which beamed upon the benighted isle, when
the apostle, rescued from a watery grave, was thrown upon it ta
fulfil the commission of Him who ' from seeming evil yet educeth
good.'

Malta generally had the look of greater comparative populous-
ness than its smaller sister isles. Its appearance too, was less
displeasing. The style of building, like that of Goza, was totally
different from anything I have elsewhere remarked. The
houses, of strange and various form, were all flat-roofed, and
seemed half buried in the earth. Their few, narrow windows
resembled castellated loopholes. The villages looked like so
many citadels ; convents like garrisons, and cottages like ward-
ers' towers. In all the erections, great and small, there was a
certain oriental cast of architecture. The spires of churches
and convents were not unlike minarets. Many structures had
a decaying, half-ruinous look ; and what with the general
surface of the landscape, naked of wood and devoid of the
visible beauties of cultivation, the tout ensemble brought to my
mind the portraitures of scenes on the wastes of Palestine or
Persia.

COAST OF MALTA. 97

The shore was generally steep but not elevated. Indeed no
part of Malta appeared more than a few hundred yards higher
than the surface of the sea. The coast like Goza, as far as the
eye extended, was lined by a low rampart, strengthened with
towers irregularly distributed, and pierced with embrasures for
cannon. In places naturally more accessible small redoubts were
erected for additional defence ; and in the face of the solid rock
I observed some artificial perforations of very large calibre in-
tended for bombs.

The soil, partitioned in narrow strips and fenced with thick
walls, was mostly hidden from view. Of course litde of vege-
tation could be seen, and the sides of the gende eminences rising
back from the coast looked in general like an irregular slope of
the natural rock. This circumstance, though a necessary pre-
caution it would seem against the washing of earths in the rainy
seasons, by no means contributes to diminish the air of impover-
ishment and even sterility, which the island offers at first view. ^^

The peasantry were not seen. If they were abroad and em-
ployed, the walls of the enclosures and highways would proba-
bly screen them. A few fishermen took their stations early on
the points of rocks, which edged the shore. The descent
was a task of difficulty and seeming peril. The most of
them had nothing on but loose cotton drawers and woollen
caps. One man was coolly employed watching his lines —
in perfect nudity. Some fishing boats also put off and glided
to their respective stations to spread their nets. They were
pushed with oars, not rowed, the men standing up the while.
Two or three wherries of another description approached and
hailed the Packet, for the purpose of taking letters or other com-
missions^for delivery on shore, as the vessel on its arrival would
go into quarantine. Though we had nothing to entrust to them,
they still kept about the ship in the hope of catching something
in the shape of employment. They were joined by others,
and at length were all ordered ojEF. Yet they fell only into the
vessel's wake, and plied their light oars so busily as to keep us
company ; and with this little flotilla we prosecuted our course.
13

98 Ml^DlTEllllANEAN.

The boats were of singular make, with high curling beaks
fancifully painted, and having on their stems or sterns, besides
the emblem of the cross, the initials inscribed of the Holy Virgin
or Jesus Salvator. In working these wherries, the oars, like
those of the fishing boats, were all propelled forward. Two of
them were managed by mere boys.

Further on, several feluccas and another strange class of ves-
sels, called Sparonaras, were seen issuing from the port, bound
with a fair breeze for Sicily. The latter are a kind of shallop
without deck, about thirty feet long, and are constructed for row-
ing in calm weather. With a propitious wind, as on this morn-
ing, they hoist a huge square sail athwart the midships, and con-
trive, despite of the clumsy apparatus, to move with surprising
despatch.

Having proceeded thus far, it is time to pause and adjust our
reckoning, that the reader may better understand the bearings
and relations of places which remain to be mentioned.

What is called the harbor of Malta is in fact a double port.
The narrow rocky peninsula on which the city of La Valetta is
built, runs through the midst of it dividing it into two capacious
basins. On the right, as the town is approached, is the port
which is appropriated to commercial vessels in quarantine and
some small craft j that to the left is the more general receiver
for ships, and a portion of it is specially reserved for the ancho-
rage of men of war. To that port w^e are destined. — It is the
farther one of the two, when entered from the west. The
mouth to such important harbors w^ould be expected to be
strongly guarded ; and their bulwarks at first view could no^^
easily be mistaken.

At ten, accordingly, the fortress of Tigne which defends the
lesser port made its appearance, distant about a league. As we
gained on this, the towers of La Valetta beyond began to lift
themselves into view, and the outer point whereon is the bastion
of St John, lay fully exposed. The fort being passed, the specta-
cle so anxiously desired, burst on the gaze. La Valetta, with its
proud old walls, its lofty ramparts, its towers and palaces

GRAND HARBOR. 99

was all displayed. Rounding the point almost under the shadow
of the castle of St Ehiio, and sailing between that citadel and
Port Ricasoli on the opposite point, we entered the Grand Har-
''or. Viitoriosa surmounted by the castle of St Angelo, and
JHirmola with its mural bulwarks scarcely less formidable,
were seen crowding tw^o parallel promontories which fronted the
city and protruded into the bay. The basins between them
were filled with shipping. The quays of La Valetta lined with
a thousand boats and feluccas, exhibited an animating spectacle
of busde and activity. The city itself, reposing on its firm foun-
dations and begirt with walls of amazing strength, looked tran-
quilly down upon the moving scene. A few flags, displaying
no longer the cross of Malta but the ensign of St George,
flaunted gaily from the towers and shipping around.

But there was one flag, marked by no cross, which early
caught and riveted my eye. Could I mistake it ? It wd.s my
country's banner, floating majestically over one of its noblest
ships. In the centre of the harbor, and certainly its most con-
spicuous object, the North Carolina was anchored ;

' ipsamque inoenti mole Chimsvam.

It was not a chimera in one sense, however ; it was a sober
reality. She had put in, as I have since learned, but a few days
ago ; and my surprise in beholding her was only exceeded by
the pleasure. A British flag-ship — the Revenge, seventyfour,
— lay not far distant ; but though bearing the same nominal
rate, her appearance both in pomp and power was strikingly in-
ferior. We dropt to the leeward, at a respectful distance from
these lordly ships, and furled our sails and cast our anchor.

There is scarcely a place, that does not disappoint the eye in
some respects on a first inspection. It may disappoint in two
ways, either agreeably or unpleasantly ; but still be a different
thing from what was pictured. And thus it is with Malta. Its
aspect is foreign from ray previous notions; yet I am not aware
that it loses in impressiveness. It has a venerable look at least,
which suits well with its historic associations.

100 MEDITERRANEAN.

No two fortresses are more dissimilar than Malta and Gibral-
tar. They are perhaps equally impregnable. But in the case
of Gibraltar, if nature has not done all, she has done her utmost ;
here, with little assistance from that efficient handmaid, art has
exhausted its resources for defence.

From my station in the harbor, a bird's-eye view compre-
hends a mighty amphitheatre of fortifications. The very names
of these as indicated on a plan before me, would be tedious to
enumerate. It would also require a greater familiarity with the
terms of military science than one unversed in the school
of Vauban can be supposed to possess, in order to describe the
works themselves. And I doubt if the majority of my readers
would be greatly edified with a detail of batteries and bastions,
ramparts and ravelins, half-moons and horn-works, curtains, cav-
aliers and conterscarps. Leaving these matters to professional
pens, my object will be to glance merely at some prominent
features and topics more intelligible.

Towards either extremity of La Valetta there are lofty galle-
ries built on extensive lines of open arches, evidently for the pur-
pose of promenades. They have an airy and imposing look.
In the centre of the town rise the two towers of the cathedral
of St John. Near the casde of St Elmo and a little to the
north, a low dome and some batdements denote the old palace
of the Grand Masters of Malta. On the Marino, nearly fronting
us, is a long range of buildings with low double stories, for-
merly used as magazines for the galleys of the Maltese knights.
At one end of this, there is a large fountain which seems to be
in great demand from the mixed multitude constantly about it.

Perhaps the greatest objects of interest in view are the
castles of St Angelo and Elmo, situated, as already intimated,
on opposite sides of the harbor. The former was the only for-
tress on the whole island when the knights took possession of it.
The grand-master, L'Isle Adam, greatly strengthened it ; and
against this the mightiest efforts of the Turks were unsuccess-
fully made in the famous siege of 1565. II Borgo, (literally, the
Borough,) adjacent to St Angelo, and supported by additional

PORT ENVIRONS. IQl

defences of its own, shared also by its undaunted resistance in
the meed of triumpli on that glorious occasion. The little
peninsula deservedly gained thereby the name of Citta Vitto-
riosa, or the Victorious City.

St Elmo is not less memorable. It fell indeed after most
desperate assaults into the hands of the infidels, but not till the
last knight of a little band of three hundred, together with
thirteen hundred soldiers appointed to defend it, sunk in the
dreadful strife. Mustapha, when he entered the fort, literally
walked over their dead bodies. Its capture cost him the lives
of eight thousand of his troops. Struck with the insignificance
of the post, the bashaw is said to have exclaimed, — looking
at that moment to St Angelo opposite, — ' What resistance may
we not expect from the parent, when the child, small as it is,
has caused the sacrifice of so many of our bravest soldiers !'

In the present coup d^ceil we must not overlook La Sangle,
seated on a part of the promontory abreast of Vittoriosa. This
bears the proud title of Invincible, — Citta Invitta, — on account
of the deeds of valor performed by the defenders of its fortress
in the same tremendous invasion, — deeds second only to those
of the garrisons of Saints Elmo and Angelo.

But I must turn to matters of a more personal character.
The Packet being in quarantine, there was no landing
saving at the Barrier, (called also, the Parlatorio,) an office
erected on a point of land near the head of the port. Those
who wish to transact business viva voce, or enjoy interviews
with Maltese residents or others, must meet them there. To
one inexperienced in affairs of this sort, the arrangement, though
a partial convenience, is yet sufficiently awkward. Having
letters to the American consul and some others which I
wished to transmit early, I accepted an invitation from the com-
mander of the ship to take boat with him and proceed to the
Barrier.

The office is situated near the water. A short flight of stairs
leads up to it. The building is accommodated with wings ; but
the front of the body is open having only a bar railing. The

102 MEDITERRANEAN.

latter is marked off into several divisions, which is a salutary pre-
caution to prevent contact between those of different terms oi
alloled quarantine. For if you so much as touch another, (nay
receive from him a card of address,) whose quarantine is longer
than your own, the law is inexorable ; — you must undergo the
same length of sequestration to which he was doomed, and what
is worse, your time will be counted from the very moment of
contact. It was amusing to observe the suspicion with which
the subjects of quarantine eyed one another, and their shyness
as shown in shunning any possible contiguity. — It is not exactly
so with all ; for your luckless neighbors from Egypt or the
Archipelago^ doomed to ride a rigorous quarantine of some thirty
or forty days, walk about with unconcern, conscious that they
can meet with none in a worse situation than themselves, or by
whose contact they can be injured. No healing virtue can flow
forth from others t© mend their condition, l)ut contagion, it is
decreed, may emanate from such lazars.

A space two yards wide, fenced off by another railing parallel
to the first, occupies the entire centre of the Palatorio. Your
friends stand behind the second line of defence, and attendants
walk in the space reserved with a pair of formidable tongs to
receive the letters or papers which may be offered. They first
take them to a fumigating grate, before delivering them to the
persons designated. I v/as so fortunate as to find the consul at
the ofiice. My letters were transmitted a la mode, though I con-
fess it was something mortifyingto see them, when on reaching his
hands, brown as the fumes of sulphur could make them. Com-
modore Rodgers was also at the Barrier, and I was happy in the
opportunity of paying him m_y respects and furnishing him with
the latest files of American papers. We exchanged communi-
cations of news ; — the commodore, consul and myself stand-
ing, of course, at respectable arms length. I was much pleased
with the urbanity of Signor Eynaud. He promised to do what he
could to soften the rigors of my bondage ; and from the com-
modore I received the offer of every civility in his power. The
latter was dressed in full uniform, and looked finely. His

FLAG-SHIP. ] 03

beautiful barge put off from the stairs at the moment we left.
It was manned with a noble set of fellows in neatest apparel.
Its silken flag fluttered sportively to the breeze, and it darted,
as wiih feathered speed, to the gallant ship which waited to

ereet the return of its commander.

The port this evening is fancifully illuminated by the thou-
sand lights from the shore which encircle it with a glittering
zone. The stars, as though pausing in their courses, shed
down a mild and beauteous lustre upon the scene. Nor has
the eye only been regaled. Music we have had of martial note.
When the Revenge at sunset struck her flags, the national British
air was played. The colours of the North Carolina were next
hauled down, and the marine band on board immediately com-
menced some noble marches in honor of the ceremony. From
the forts around, the bugle, fife, and drum have since been
occasionally heard, and their tones have come pleasantly mel-
lowed over the surface of the placid waters.

February 1. Everything around is obviously militant. The
arts of peace are here but subservient to those of arms. One
of the earliest sounds which this morning aroused me, was the
din of the neighboring garrisons. Troops have been seen exer-
cising on the parade of St Elmo and a broad esplanade to the
east of La Valette.

But the line-of-batde ships which attracted attention yester-
day, were among the early objects of fresh interest this morning.
There are no others of their rate in the harbor, though there
are several frigates and sloops, both French and Dutch, moored
in a convenient basin at their left.

The Revenge is certainly a fine ship. She has a round stern
after the Sepping's plan, which is ornamented with light galle-
ries used as places of lounge for die officers not on duty. But
on the whole, she is not considered one of the best vessels
of her rate by the English themselves. She bears the flag of
the commanding officer on the Mediterranean station, and in this
respect answers to the ship of Commodore Rodgers, who under
another title is, virtually, admiral to our naval forces in this sea.

104 MEDITERRANEAN.

It is no disparagement to the Revenge to repeat her striking
inferiority to the North Carolina. The latter is one of the finest
ships which ever floated. I have seen in the harbor and docks
of Portsmouth some of the best of the British first rates ; but none
which in potency looked her superior. She is now in highest
feather, and no royal pleasure yacht can beat her in show.
The brass caps on her guns are polished with the utmost care.
Her long red boarding pikes are ornamentally stacked around
the base of her masts. Marine sentries in neat uniform are sta-
tioned in different quarters of the ship, on its outer platforms,
and along the main gangway leading down its lofty side.
Everything exhibits order, beauty and pride of state. A
striking specimen of this, was displayed this morning when
her flags were lifted for the day.

The Revenge spread hers first, at the hour of eight. It was
handsomely done, and accompanied, as on lowering them last
evening, with appropriate music. I had some anxiety to see
how this matter v^^ould be managed by the North Carolina when
her turn should come j and certainly hoped that it would be as-
worthy of praise.

The hour stole by ; and nothing was seen but the long pen-
dant stripe that always floats aloft, and no note nor sign of
preparation was given for what was to follow. St John's struck
the hour of nine. Its last tones had just ceased to vibrate, when
a volley of musketry from a platoon of marines firing as one
man, gave the signal. Instantly the flags were thrown forth,,
unfurled by invisible hands, and mounting with winged haste to
their respective places. The ensign at the mizen peak, and
jack on the bowsprit staff, the starry broad blue pendant, — em-
blem of the Amercan Union, — and the flag of the fleet at the
main royal truck, in the lapse of a few moments were waving
in due position. A powerful band upon the quarter-deck sa-
luted the colours of the Republic with the inspiring air of Hail
Columbia, followed by other noble strains. The rays of the
sun which shone full on the broadside of the magnificent ship
were dazzlingly reflected from the burnished muzzles of iier

LAZARETTO* 105

guns in triple tiers. And the wooing breeze played gaily in the
bosom of her proud streamers. It was a spectacle, with all its
accompaniments, of inimitable grace. The ramparts of the
overlooking fortresses were lined with observing groups ; and
for myself, I yielded to a throb of patriotic eladon, as my heart
tlien reverted to the remembrance of my country.

At twelve, I left the Packet which was to proceed to Corfu,
and was rowed to the Lazaretto. This establishment is placed
in the centre of the north harbor, on an island which it divides
with Fort Manuel — another strong post with five bastions and
a half moon. The Fort and hospital are of course dis-
joined. The former is said to be undermined, a provisional
dernier resort in case of threatened capture. The Lazaretto is
a vast pile of building, enclosing several squares, and capable of
receiving at once ten thousand men. I understand that that
number was actually contained in it at one period in the late
war. The squares are provided with inner galleries, and these
are subdivided to prevent intercourse. A custode is appointed
to each company, or where, as in my case, the individual is
alone, still the attendance is not dispensed with. His duty is
never to lose sight of his ward when abroad. There is a small
quay in front of the establishment on which the recreation of
walking may be enjoyed.

I have two immense rooms and a court assigned for my
quarters. It is considered the best allotment in this division of
the building, but a more gloomy establishment it would be
difficult to plan. The main apartment looks like a convent-
chapel, only dismantled of its furniture. The centre of the
vaulted roof is full thirty feet from the floor. It is groined, —
some half score of arches meeting in the ceiling. At one end
is a grated Gothic window elevated beyond reach, or hope. A
large cross is painted or inlaid in the glazing. The walls are
constructed of square blocks of stone, whitewashed. The floor
is a flag pavement. Not an article of any species of moveable
was in the apartment on my entrance ; and this dismal hall the
custode calls my ' parlor.'
14

106 MEDITERRANEAN.

Thanking him for his politeness, let us take a turn in the
* kitchen.' We enter it by a passage cut through thick ribbed
walls. But alas, no larder, no table of smoking viands, no
deep-mouthed chimney place salute the visiter ; but the na-
kedness of a cold, bare prison, on which the light dimly
streams through iron barred windows. The court next invites
us. It is terraced, provided with a cistern, and encompassed
with walls several yards in height, the strength of which does
honor to the mason who reared them time out of mind. Noth-
ing else can be seen saving the battlements of a neighboring
quadrangle.

Whilst I was ruminating on my accommodations, two porters
entered bearing a field-bed and mattresses, baskets of refresh-
ments and a few timely et ceteras, which had been despatched
for my use by a friend in town. A table and some chairs
followed, and a note was delivered saying, that a purveyor was
provided to supply my other wants, and that dinner would be
sent me at a seasonable hour. The promise was fulfilled ; a
bountiful board, — no thanks to my kitchen — made in good
time its welcome appearance. My trunks have since supplied me
with books, and writing materials, and with them I have sought
to beguile ray imprisonment. The evening has waned. Pietra
has just spread my bed, or rather pitched my encampment in
the centre of this Gothic hall. I go to take possession. All is.
still excepting his footfall, the echo of which rumbles along the
roof. I have tried to converse with him, but for want of a
sounding-board have been obliged to desist. The voice is lost
in never ending reverberations. Pietro has lighted a taper or
two extra to dispel the thick gloom, as much for his sake as my
own ; but without pretending the conjurer, I can tell him that if
ghosts walk, they will surely look in upon us before the cock
crows.

Feb. 3. — That there is wisdom in certain quarantine regu-
lations cannot be disputed. A rigid adherence to them has
banished the plague, and doubdess some other scourges from
European ports, which have suffered in the absence of such

aUARANTINING — SMALL-POX. 107

restrictions. Vessels which come from the upper Levant
should be carefully inspected, and they all may undergo a rea-
sonable term of sequestration. The same may be said of ships
whose crews in whole or in part have been elsewhere exposed
to infection, or which manifest its symptoms. The North
Carolina is in this predicament. The contagion of small-pox
was contracted at some port, whether Tunis or Toulon I have
not learned, and this was one of the reasons of her putting into
the harbor of Valetta. The sick were immediately removed to a
quarter of the Lazaretto, where several have died, the last was
buried yesterday. The residue of the crew on board, consid-
erably exceeding eight hundred, are in the enjoyment of perfect
health. Still the ship is rigidly sequestered, and the only com-
munication with the shore is by the Parlatorio, or here at the
hospital.

But I confess my ignorance to perceive on what rational
grounds a confinement like mine can be pleaded. A passenger
in a British ship, from a British port which is known to be free
from contagious distempers, having sailed with a company of
men and officers all hale and sound, and bearing myself a bill
of health, under the seal of his excellency of Gibraltar, addressed
to the port authorities at Malta, I can see nothing in my deten-
tion in a Lazaretto but an act of vexatious imposition. It is
nothing to the point that the rule is irrespective, it is then unwise ;
that the laws of quarantine cannot be suspended, they are then
arbitrary ; that my period of imprisonment is short, it is as
tedious as four long days can make them. Happily I saved
one of them on shipboard, but yet I have another to notch
before the tally will be complete. ^^

I obtained permission to visit my countrymen who are lodged
here. The interview across a barrier was sufficiently guarded.
I learned from the officers that nearly all the patients are con-
valescent. The few who had died were victims to undoubted
small pox, not varioloid ; and two or three cases were of the
worst confluent form. Yet all of the crew were innoculated for
the kine pock before the departure of the ship from America.
The subjects of previous vaccination formed no exception.

108 MEDITERRANEAN.

If this fact should seem to impair the credit of the vaccine
lymph as a preservative against small pox, its general virtue
in reality is demonstrated. For, that almost nine-tenths of a
crew consisting, — officers and men, all told, — of nearly one
thousand, should entirely escape contagion, — that nineteen
twentieths of those who received it, should exhibit only mild
symptoms of disease, — and when it is considered that those
infected with genuine small-pox, were men probably whose
constitutions, vitiated by previous disease or intemperance,
resisted the benign and defensive operation of the vaccine
matter, the claims of the last to respect and confidence are not
intrinsically abated. In general, however, it may be admitted
that the school of Jenner at first advanced too much. And
when disappointment followed, its opponents stood ready to
parade it. But they were too unmeasured in abuse. They
forgot, or had not known, that cases had occurred of a second
reception of small pox where once it had been imbibed and
had its run by direct innoculation. Nay, instances of such re-
currence have happened after it has been taken in the natural
way. A memorable example 1 recollect to have seen recorded
in the annual report of the trustees of the British Vaccine Fund,
a few years ago, of a man who having survived a violent attack
of the small pox contracted naturally, suffered twice, subse-
quently, all the stages of the same distemper, though greatly
ameliorated. This solitary case was contingent, doubtless, on
idiosyncracy ; predispositions to diseases being variant in differ-
ent constitutions.

On the whole, it appears that neither cow pox nor small pox
are certain safeguards against a species of disease analagous to
the latter, though usually of milder type. But the doctrine of
chances is found on observation to be on the side of the first
named agent ; and the distemper which may follow upon fresh
contagion, is ascertained to be lighter than that which occa-
sionally ensues by the other method. Physicians have given
it the name of varioloid, a name not very precise, and some
pretend that it owes its origin to the discovery and use of vac-

A SKETCH. 109

cination. Be it so : it is a happy exchange for that tremendous
pestilence, the small-pox ; and how generally it has banished
this, may be seen in our American cities. The man of middle
age can remember when a boy, the many faces of persons he
used to meet, scarred by the unseemly ravages of small pox ;
and those persons were but survivors of multitudes who had
follen victims to its unsparing desolations. Now that our cities
have doubled and trebled their population, the pitted visage has
almost totally disappeared, and whenever met with; is an object
of notice from its very rarity.

Lounging through the privileged quarter of the Lazaretto,
my man Friday always at my elbow, I am the more struck
with its vastness and nakedness. A few Greeks occupy rooms
at a remote corner of a wing on my left. One or two gentle-
men are lodged in the central building where I am stationed, or
rather entombed. The sick are separated far away in the north-
erly division of the establishment. From my rooms I hear a
poor captive above, thrumming the live-long day on a guitar,
and singing with plaintive voice ditties in remembrance per-
chance of some absent fair, or a lament for his kindred and
home. And in the morning I am mocked by the merrier
concert of swallows, twittering under the old eaves where they
have built; — but bating these exceptions, silence and solitude
reign throughout the halls, corridors and courts of this immense
edifice. Many dates are rudely cut in the old walls, left by
those who have successively lodged around. I have observed
several more than a century old ; one was of 1 700, and another
of 1689. I am reminded that the last was the memorable year
when the knights made their unfortunate assault on Negropont,
and suffered a disastrous repulse. Other rude carvings have
amused me, memorials of all nations, tastes and languages.
Besides names and specified terms of quarantine, there are
morceaus of poetry and prose, emblems of anchors, flags, ships,
crosses, shrines, and the initials of the Virgin and Son in pious
cipher. They show the hours of listlessness and ennui passed
by others who have preceded me.

110 MEDITERRANEAN.

I have had a kindly call or two from the city. A bundle of
books was sent, among which I find the very appropriate, if not
novel one, of Zimmerman on Solitude. There came, too, the
welcome present of a bunch of flowers, comprising a beautiful
variety of blossoms of the season, — geraniums, roses, violets,
and carnations. They recall the sweet month of a New Eng-
land June, rather than the season of our bleak February^ The
temperature of Malta is quite as foreign, the glass shaded on
my terrace indicating at two P. M. seventynine of Fahrenheit.

Feb, 4. — Ten A. M. La Valetta. I have just obtained
my emancipation, and am happy in tasting again the sweets of
freedom. An hour ago. Signer E. obligingly called in person
to take me in his boat to town. I was glad once more to seize
the hand of a friend and fellow-being. I was not long in em-
barking, leaving my ca/Tzp-equipage, — bag and baggage, — to
follow. In a few minutes we touched the rock of Malta, and I
was conducted through streets of many a turn, to an excellent
house in Palace Square.

It is Sunday, and I have not time to write more. Breakfast
waits, and then comes the hour of divine service. I have
already seen some novelties, and my attention will probably be
attracted to others before the day closes. The record of my
impressions is reserved for another chapter.

CHAPTER V

MALTA.

Aspect of the City. — Style and Material of Building. — Curious Balconies. —
Condition of the Inhabitants. — Peculiarities of Dress. — Sunday in Malta. —
A Caleche. — Excursion to St Antonio. — Aqueduct. — Maltese Husbandry. —
Grand Masters' Garden. — Language of the Islanders. — Specimens of Native-.
Poetry. — Rhodian Families. — Catholic Churches. — Character and Influence
of the Clergy. — Policy of the Government, Past and Present. — Spiritual
Courts. — Festival in Honour of St Paul. — Image of the Saiut. — Thoughts on
the Effects of his Doctrine.

La Valetta ; Piazza St Georgii, Feb. 5. — This is a brave
old place. Malta has the genuine hoar of antiquity, quite to my
taste. It claims by its very aspect a tribute of veneration which
I am not willing to withhold.

The appearance of things carries me back in imagination to a
period far more remote than the origin of the objects themselves.
La Valetta with its suburbs, has not the dust of accumulated
centuries heaped upon it. Its history, though a crowded one,
is easily unrolled. It embraces but a small part of the scroll of
even modern annals. It is scarcely two centuries and a half, ab
URBE condita, — since the foundation was laid of the city of
Valette, and ' Melita renascens ' was written upon the corner
stone ; yet the eye that ranges over the structures which have
subsequently arisen, would presume them to be the monuments
of an age coeval with empires which have long passed away.

Much of this is owing to the style of architecture employed ;
but more, to the nature of the building material. It is a soft
crumbling free stone. When fresh quarried, it would seem
totally unfitted for permanent erections, but it is found to harden

112 MALTA.

considerably, especially on the surface. This process continues
for some years, and the stone during that time may be consid-
ered as improving. But at length the crust begins to peel and
separate. The action of the air by which it was first indurated,
gradually decomposes and destroys it. The desquamation con-
tinues till in the lapse of a century the outer walls of the most
massive fabrics, unless carefully repaired, display a ruinous
aspect. Accordingly, the walls of even private houses are made
unusually thick. They are actually firmer than their external
appearance often indicates ; and the rooms they enclose, besides
being spacious, are rendered proportionably cooler, and more
comfortable during the sultry summer months. Still the first gen-
eral impression of things without, which an observer takes up, is
that of decay. La Valetta appears to his eye as a vast fortress
which the hand of time is despoiling, and on whose venerable walls
it has inscribed the sentence of a final and no distant overthrow.

The stone of Malta being abundant and easily wrought, is
converted into all possible uses. The floors of houses, to their
very attics, are composed of it. Staircases, balustrades and bal-
conies, are formed from the same material. As a specimen I
find the floors, walls and ceiling of my apartment laid in solid
blocks of it. The heavy valves of my doors, I almost thought
must be made of stone, so many are the uses to which it is other-
wise applied. In a more natural appropriation, viz. for paving,
it is found of little use. It proves on trial too soft, and the
streets consequently are laid with stones imported at considerable
cost. The main thorough-fare, Strada Reale, is paved with
jEtnean lava, shaped in pieces a foot square, and this is ascer-
tained to be an excellent and durable substitute for the native
rock.

The houses of Malta are generally lofty, and have quite a
palace look. The roofs form a flat terrace, plastered with poz-
zolana, and may be used as places of promenade and observa-
tion. I have already availed myself of the terrace of this house
to survey the town and environs ; and a commanding position it
is. It was while walking on a roof of such construction that

BUILDINGS — BALCONIES . 113

David saw, and was enamoured with, the charms of Uriah's wife.
Looking down on the surrounding courts J have also seen maids
and matrons, but none were Bathshebas in beauty, nor were
any bathing. To a similar style of building the scripture alludes
when it says, * Let not him who is on the house top come down
to take anything away;' — i. e. let him hasten at once to the
street-stairs and descend, and join the gathering multitude pre-
pared to fly from the city of destruction. From the roof of
this house, an uninterrupted walk may be had to the next square,
and if the street were bridged from roof to roof, the walk might
be continued over the whole town.

Strada Reale (King street,) is the main avenue of Valetta.
It is tolerably broad, and lined with noble buildings. The par-
allel streets are mostly narrow. Vicary's, w4iere I am lodged,
is built on the square formed by Strada Reale and Strada Stretta,
(literally, ' the street which is called strait,') and fronts on St
George's piazza, a spacious court before the old palace of the
Grand Masters. The windows of my apartments are provided
with the general appendage of balconies, and from the central
position of the house I have many materials of observation with-
out stirring abroad.

These balconies are a curious feature in the Maltese houses.
They are of all sizes and patterns. Some are very uncouth, but
their oddness is not disagreeable. The stone work is fantasti-
cally carved, and the frame above is frequently glazed, and
painted with various colours, such as green, blue and slate. Some
of the balconies are like the segment of a ship's round house,
grappled to the sides of the tenements. They are provided
frequently with blinds as well as windows, which swing open
from hinges fixed above, and not laterally. I have seen several
of the size of litde parlors. They are neatly finished within,
ornamented with paintings and flowers, and furnished with seats
and a table. Members of families spend whole hours in them,
and receive visiters there, or pursue their avocations and amuse-
ments, the chief of which however seems to be that of gazing
on the passing crowd. The smaller balconies are scarcely bigger
15

114 MALTA.

than sentry-boxes. Two or three persons can just wedge them-
selves in, and there they will sit like statues for the half day
together. One man I observed yesterday in a little balcony of
Strada Stretta, — wrapped in a cloak, and his swarthy fea-
tures half hid by a low slouched hat, — who was fixed to his seat
for four good hours. His sole earthly object was that of scru-
tinizing the motley multitudes that passed beneath. He looked
like Diogenes in his tub.

Such excrescences give a strange bulging shape to the fronts
of the houses ; especially where as in some cases they project
half way over the street. They are an anomaly in architecture
which I have nowhere seen. But the streets themselves are
often oddly constructed. Those on the sides of the rocky
promontory, instead of being gently sloped and made passable
for wheels, are spaced off like stairways. St Paolo is one ; both
the street and side walks are graduated by this clumsy method ;
and the pedestrian who ascends it is doomed, for no crime of
his own, to much the same penance as that of stepping a tread-
mill. There is another peculiarity which arrests attention. The
lower windows of houses are protected by iron grates. The
strength of the bars shows that something more than the glass
is meant to be guarded. The frames protrude several inches
from the walls, and give a monastic, or rather a prison-like look
to the edifices. Their purpose is not to prevent the inmates of
houses from breaking out, but others from breaking in ; and on
the whole, it does not furnish so pleasing an augury of the char-
acter of the population as might be wished.

How the multitude can be expected to be honest, it would
be difficult to imagine. They are ignorant, poor, and without
employment. Swarms are abroad who seem to have no visible
means of subsistence, and where they lay their heads at night, I
know not. La Valetta apparently could not accommodate one
half of them. Yet rents, I understand, are very low. An excel-
lent house, with court, cisterns and other appurtenances, may be
hired for one hundred or one hundred and thirty Spanish dollars
a year. Many large dwellings are cut up and portioned out to

INHABITANTS. 115

tenants, — a single room serving for a whole family. This is
turning them seemingly to better account by the landlord, than
renting each house altogether, as one or two small apartments
will rent for 1 8 or 20 dollars ; but it is probable that the tenants
who are obliged to take up witli such narrow accommodations,
are not always the best paymasters. In fact, the poverty of the
major part of the population is more than an offset to its re-
dundancy in numbers, in regulating the price of rents. Gibraltar,
perhaps, is equally crowded as La Valetta taken alone ; but the
difference is, that in Gibraltar labor is in demand ; every man,
woman and child can find something to do, and is paid for it.
Of course they can afford the expense of a comfortable shelter
for their heads. Here, not Valetta only, but all its suburbs and
indeed all Malta, swarms like a bee-hive, and a large part of the
people are without money, without employment, and so far as I
can see without bread or habitations. How they live by day
or dispose of themselves by night, are matters of mystery. Hun-
dreds of them it would seem can have no other bed than the
cold bare pavement. But this is a matter to which I shall
advert when my opportunities of observation and inquiry will
be more extended.

The people appear to be a hardy and capable race. The
men have generally spare figures, a little under the middle
stature, but very muscular and active. Their faces are naturally
swarthy, they are sunburnt by the universal custom of wearing un-
shaded caps, either cotton or woollen. The colour of their skins
is the same as that of the inhabitants of the neighboring states of
Barbary. Indeed there is much in the looks of the people
which denotes a similar origin, particularly in their short crisped
hair, and a certain flatness of the nose. It is said that their
language is so nearly the same with that spoken on the Barbary
shore, that the natives perfectly understand one another.

The dress of the Maltese is very singular, but as I have no
time to enter into minutise just now, I will confine myself to that
of the women. When abroad, they are all arrayed in black.
They put on over their other dress a robe or loose skirt of that

116 MALTA.

colour, brought high on the bosom, and in place of bonnets their
heads are covered with a black silk mantle which invests their
shoulders, and descends half way behind. The part which
covers the head is furnished with a piece of whalebone inserted
in the hem, which keeps it in position, and prevents the silk from
dropping over the eyes. One hand placed inside, is always
necessary to hold together the sides of the scarf in front ; and
the other is often hid under its folds, only a fore-finger being
suffered to peep out through an opening left for the purpose.
Of course, under such mufflers little can be seen of the beauties
of form or feature, if a Maltese nymph happen to possess them ;
the eyes and a moving pall-black figure are all that can be dis-
tinguished. But sometimes the fair one deigns to exhibit her
face to a curious gazer, in place of engrossing to herself the
privilege of seeing ; and features good humored, rather pleasing
than handsome, and irradiated by a pair of fine sparkling eyes,
are displayed to the beholder. The complexion is a dark olive
but partaking a litde too much of a sort of mulatto tinge. The
mantle is obviously borrowed, or rather it has descended, from
a distant age and people. It answers to the veil of Eastern
ladies.

Such figures, thousands of whom were abroad yesterday, it
being Sunday, give the streets a funereal look. It seems as if
all Malta had gone into mourning. A gentleman who came to
reside here a few years ago, describes the effect on him some-
what differently. Conversing today on the subject, he said that
he took every Maltese woman whom he saw on landing for a
nun ; and the wonder in his mind was how they were suffered
to walk at large beyond their cloisters. Certain it is the impres-
sion produced is very singular.

In the cathedral of St John's, yesterday, at the hour of mass,
I found the great central area covered with these sable figures.
Hundreds were kneeling in silent devotion, their faces all directed
to the high altar, and eyes bent on the pavement, and I could
not but contemplate a congregation of such worshippers with
more than usually lively interest.

GOVERNMENT CHAPEL. 117

Popery here wears a lordly mien, but Protestantism appears
in a depressed condition, — more low indeed than lowly. Gov-
ernment can hardly boast the form of spreading a fostering wing
over it. It has done less here for the interests of the Protestant
church than at Gibraltar, and there it was little enough. There
is a chapel devoted to the Episcopal service, set off in a part of
the old Grand Masters' establishment, which in the days of the
knights was employed for a very different purpose, — having been
used, as lam credibly informed, for the ecurie of the sovereigns
of the Order. It is now the government church ; and thus,
where horses have been stalled, men assemble to worship. The
ostlery has undergone some alterations of course to accommodate
it to its present more honorable appropriation, but the walls,
mutatis mutandis, remain the same. It is a long room, more
like an extended entry or corridor than a hall, and situated in a
damp, gloomy basement story. What is more, this is the only
place of Episcopal worship in Malta. I attended divine service
there yesterday, and was chilled by a cold sermon and the sight
of a meagre attendance of worshippers. The whole congregation
could not be estimated at more than a hundred.

As respects Protestantism, therefore, on the island the ark of
God may be said to abide, if not in a tent, yet in a stable. It is
true that the Saviour of the world condescended to be born in
no better place, a manger having cradled his nativity ; but it may
be doubted whether Christians are at liberty to commemorate
even his humiliation, by the selection of such a spot for their
devotions. To that very manger where the Lord was born,
some Eastern magians, we read, bore princely gifts; and
they offered the tribute of gold, frankincense and myrrh. It is
on record, moreover, to the honor of Israel's king, that it was in
his heart to build a magnificent temple for the worship of the
Most High ; and he left it in special charge to his son and royal
successor, to apply the treasures which he had religiously
amassed for that great object. But here is a civilized Christian
power, foremost among the Protestant nations, and that boasts

118 MALTA.

its enlightened piety, its riches and resources, which shamefully
neglects in colonies like this, where its will is law, the interests
of a church which is recognised at home as the firmest pillar of
the British throne.

Nowhere have I known such a total perversion of the Sabbath
as was remarked here yesterday. The churches of Catholics
were thronged indeed with devotees at the service of mass, and
tlie doors of the Episcopal chapel were open, not thronged, at
the appointed hour. But these forms being over, no savour of
holiness hallowed the season. Many occupations were pursued
as on other days. Amusements were courted. The bastions
were crowded with saunterers ; the balconies with listless gazers.
Strolling musicians perambulated the streets. The din of arms
was frequently heard. Troops were paraded. Hawkers were
crying their saleables through the town ; and as I looked down
from ray windows, the streets exhibited an unceasing ebb and
flow, like the tumultuous heavings of a troubled sea, the live
long day.

I had scarcely entered my apartments yesterday when a mu-
sical band, understanding that a stranger had arrived, took their
stations at the door and commenced a deafened clangor with a
variety of instruments, of which a base-drum was by no means
the heaviest. Neither bribes nor commands could force them
away. They still insisted on playing in compliment to ' il signer
Americano,' — a notable personage not often seen in Malta ; —
and at last I was obliged to summon a posse of the household, with
the landlord at their head, to put them to the rout. And this
was a specimen of the order of the day. But my hand aches,
and I have no time nor spirits to add more.

Feb. 6. — Today I made an excursion into the country. A
carriage was called, and as it belongs to a class of curiosities,
it demands a cursory notice. The body is shaped something
after the form of an old fashioned chariot. It has dark painted
pannels, and is accommodated with a single seat. There are
glasses in front and at the sides. The carriage is mounted on

AN EXCURSION. 119

one pair of wheels, and dragged by a mule. The animal is
loaded with various kinds of gear showily contrived and arranged.
The vehicle, termed a caUche, has no place for the driver. He
holds the whip and reins, and runs manfully a pied. His habit
was the gala dress of the native Maltese. Over a vest orna-
mented with an abundance of large gilt buttons, he wore a short
cloak, called a caban, reaching rather below the small of the
back. A broad red sash was twisted several times around his
waist. The seams of his small clothes were lined with an un-
conscionable row of buttons ; and his feet were protected by a
rude sort of sandal — a leathern sole being fastened with strings
laced about the ancle. The peak of his long red cap decorated
with a tassel, hung in front, the invariable style of wearing that
covering by the Maltese.

The driver cracked his whip, and in a bright balmy morning
we set forth. Whether to show the speed of the mule or his
own fleetness of foot, he put the animal up to a brisk trot. Leav-
ing Porta Reale, we dashed over draw-bridge, through gate and
portcullis, and entered the splendid esplanade of Florian.
Emerging from this by a military pass through bulwarks of sur-
prising strength, I found myself fairly abroad a la champagne.
Here I expected the ardor of my feathered mercury would
cool ; but no, he drove on as though racing against time. I
called to him to rein up, out of pure compassion to himself, but
he must only have understood it as a word of encouragement,
for his whip was again flourished, and both he and the spirited
beast measured their paces with redoubled diligence. In fact,
he had his orders where to go before starting. Vicary had
translated them ; and as for other topics I found I must wait till
returning to my interpreter. Coachey knew nothing of my
English, and 1 was quite as ignorant of his native patois.

We drove through devious zigzag roads which in any other
country would have been called by-paths. They were fenced
with high stone walls, strongly built and sometimes cemented.
These highways were often too narrow to admit of two carriages
going abreast ; and on entering such avenues it was usual to

120 MALTA.

sound a note of warning to vehicles in advance, to stop for
mutual accommodation in wider passes.

It was not long before we came in sight of the noble aqueduct
which supplies La Valetta with water. The route lay along it
for several miles, and I had an opportunity of surveying and
admiring that most useful construction. I have omitted to ob-
serve that though the houses of the city and suburbs are all pro-
vided with private cisterns — every drop of rainwater being
carefully preserved by means of pipes, conducting from the ter-
raced roofs to the proper reservoirs, — yet the supply of water
was found by no means adequate to the wants of a large and in-
creasing population. Much inconvenience, and at times actual
suffering was the consequence. To provide against such
scarcity, Vignacourt, a grand master of great public spirit and
munificence, commenced in an early period of his administra-
tion the aqueduct just alluded to, and finished it. entirely at his
private cost, in 1616. By this conveyance an unfailing supply
of salubrious water is brought from a central spot of the island
called Diar Chandal, over a line of many thousand noble arches
f xtending not less than thirteen miles, and terminating in a grand
reservoir in palace-square. Conduits are thence made to take
the fountain water into all the public and private tanks of the
city. The work being partially decayed, the grand master
Rohan undertook its repair about the year 1780 ; and the whole
now displays perfect solidity. Such a costly structure shows
the riches which must have flowed into the private coffers oi
the Grand Masters of the order of St John.

In prosecuting my little tour I had an opportunity of verifying
the reports of the extraordinary fertility of Malta, despite of its
rough and sterile appearance on approaching the coast. No
part of the island seems to be neglected ; and the industry of
the peasantry both in preparing the soil and in turning it to
best account, is truly wonderful.

The redundant earth found in valleys is scooped out and
heaped in nearly horizontal layers against the sides of the
hills, and is kept in place by innumerable stone walls built ex-

ST ANTONIO. 121

pressly for supporters, and which are carried up considerably
above the surface of the soil. The small enclosures thus formed
are irregularly arranged. Beauty was not consulted, but only
use and convenience ; and certainly the precautions appear very
effectual against ravages by wind or rains. Vegetation, in
plants of the same kind, I found as much advanced as in the
neighbourhood of Boston near the close of June. But there
were several species of herbs and exotics, which I could not
recognise by name. The houses I passed were generally
very small, and they occurred frequently. I cannot say they
had a comfortable look. Several villages presented themselves,
called ' Casals,' from an Arabic word signifying stations. There
was a due proportion of churches which were comparatively
large, but of an uncouth style of architecture. The peasantry
looked very impoverished.

At length I reached the gardens of St Antonio, and enjoyed
a delicious walk in their cool and embowering shades. These
gardens are spacious and well sheltered. They belong to a
country house formerly the property of the Grand Masters, and
now in the hands of the colonial government. 1 have seldom
visited a more delightful retreat. The number of orange trees
in the grounds was lately estimated at three thousand. Be-
sides these, the gardens contain citrons, figs, pomegranates and
other valuable tropical fruits. The date tree I observed ; but
though it reaches a considerable size in Malta, (some specimens
which I have seen being ten or twelve yards in height,) it is not
made to bear. The walks and plats were literally strewn with
oranges and lemons. They seemed left to perish ; although in
better times the product of the gardens from oranges alone, is
said to have yielded the reigning Grand Master two thousand
Maltese crowns annually, a sum about equal to one thousand
dollars. The blood orange which is the boast of the island, is
a most delicious fruit. It is produced by grafting the slips of
the common orange on a pomegranate stock. The pulp inclines
to the colour of red, but not so much in mass as intermixed in
streaks ; and hence its name. It is not only more luscious but
16

122

MALTA.

less husky than the ordinary varieties of orange, and in size it
is far surpassing. The blood orange sells in Valetta for eight
pence a dozen, while the best of other sorts may be had for
four pence.

Attached to the garden is an aviary in which are a pair of very
large ostriches. They were turned out on the green and made
to exhibit their shape and paces in running. They moved with
great swiftness, although they are twenty years old. The
ostrich is described as owing his security in his native wilds to
his speed in flight. When attacked, however, it is capable of
making a rather formidable resistance. The keeper of the
birds assured me that they had been frequently tried in this way,
and they repelled assaults with much spirit. Their method is to
strike forward, like the horse, with their legs, and from what I
could observe of their power, I doubt not that they are able to
deal some pretty hard knocks. The only method of mastering
them at such times is to seize and throttle them by their long
necks. These ostriches carried themselves very majestically.
They are about nine feet tall from foot to crest.

I inquired of some laborers whom I met in the gardens the
price of their wages, and found they were employed for three
taris a day, — a sum but a trifle exceeding an American dime.
Yet with this pittance they have to support themselves. Two
tarins in compensation for regular daily labor, are, elsewhere
on the island, considered tolerably good pay. I find I have
much to learn on the subject of Maltese economy. That it
costs a native very little to live, is obvious, but still that little
must be had ; and how out of a sum of the value of a Yankee
sixpence, he can contrive to feed and clothe himself, and haply
contribute to the support of a family, is a problem beyond my
present means of solution.

I must accordingly suspend this speculation, and with it dis-
miss the remarks of the day. After recreating myself in the
refreshing and fragrant groves of St Antonio, and gathering abun-
dance of its tempting fruits, I reseated myself in the caleche and
was driven back to the city, — thanks to the sturdy mule and

FOUNTAINS — HAWKERS. 1^3

his indefatigable master, — with undiminished haste. No inci-
dent occurred particularly worthy of note.

Feb. 8. — I have already mentioned that the water conveyed
by the great aqueduct is thrown into a reservoir in St George's
Square. In front of the palace and attached to it, are fountains
which continually pour forth their limpid streams. Sculptured
effigies, in considerable taste, decorate the water-works, and from
the mouth of a carved lion's head, an eagle's, or some such
object, the thirsty may drink, and fill their jars.

These fountains, as might be supposed, are much frequented.
Between the hours of eleven and twelve, the visits are most nu-
merous. Then little groups may be seen around them eating
their humble meals — a piece of bread, a slice of smoked fish, or
a small rasher with salads serving their wants ; — and the fountains
yield them copious and refreshing draughts. There is something
primitive and picturesque in such a spectacle. It calls up the
image of a fountain by an Eastern caravansary surrounded by
way-worn pilgrims ; and between the looks, and in several respects
the garb, of the poor Maltese and their distant kinsmen of Arabia,
a resemblance is remarked sufficient to warrant the comparison.

There is a tribe of water-carriers who go about town crying
' Acqua,' but barbarously pronounced Arkoo. They are chiefly
useful to the poorer families which occupy a single apartment
or two, as is usual in many of the great buildings, and who have
not the privilege of private cisterns. A large stone vessel is
daily replenished by the carriers in each of those little domicils
at an expense of a few grains, — five of which only amount to
a cent. The men bear the water about in small casks. They
supply them at the several city fountains, a work easily done
as they have only to draw out a spigot and place the aperture
directly under a descending jet, and the cask in a few moments
is filled. Besides the perpetual cry of acqua, there is another
scarcely less constant of ' Castagne, castagne.' The cTiesnuts (so
the word implies,) are sold roasted. They are unusually large,
being thrice the size of our native ones. They are said to be
Spanish. — But there would be no end to describing the various

124 MALTA.

vociferations of the passing crowds. All is noise, hubbub and
hurry.

The language of the mass of the populace is harsh and unmu-
sical. It is a corruption of the Arabic, and possesses, it is said,
an affinity to the ancient Punic. There is thought to be so
strong a mixture of the latter, that some linguists have supposed
that the rudiments of the old Phoenician language are embodied
in it ; — that from the materials which it yields, a valuable vo-
cabulary might be formed and some tolerable notions be ac-
quired, of the genius and structure of that venerable tongue.

At present, the Maltese dialect is destitute of even a fixed
alphabet. In writing it, it is necessary to resort to foreign char-
acters, and every one, being at liberty to spell as he pleases,
endeavors to accommodate the orthography to the current pro-
nunciation. There must be much diversity occasioned by
so fluctuating a standard, and the different impressions made
on the ear. But the inconvenience is not material, as the lan-
guage is chiefly used by the illiterate islanders, and the distances
in Malta are too short to make it necessary, in any event, to
conduct business often by the pen.

I have met with translations of several Maltese sonnets which,
considered as specimens of poetic taste, are not without interest.
The metrical arrangement adopted in the original was attempt-
ed to be preserved. It will be seen that the second and
fourth lines only terminate in consonance. The first of the
fragments might serve as an inscription on a public tank, and
appears characteristic of a people of Oriental extraction.

' Ah trouble not this fountain's source,
Which late thy thirst appeas'd —
That thirst with which the passing hour
Again may see thee seiz'd.'

The second expresses the illusions of human expectations.

* He who too far indulges hope
Will find how soon it fails ; —
He 's like a seaman bottling winds,
fn hopes to fjll his sails,'

LANGUAGE. 125

The third morceau records the all-dominant power of a passion
universal in human bosoms. There is no language in which
its voice is not heard.

« Thou who by sad experience know'st
How sure Love's arrows fly,
Say what 's the smart? For well I ween
What thou hast felt, feel /.'

But the native patois is far from being the only dialect heard
in Malta. There is scarce a shore washed by the Mediterranean
which is not represented by its tribes and tongues. Here
are natives from the several coasts of the Levant, — Egyp-
tians, Greeks, Turks, and Tunisians, — besides Barbary Jews,
Sicilians, Venetians, Genoese, French, Dutch and English
whose mingled voices compose a perfect Babel. Their various
costumes together with the gaudy habiliments of the military
classes, are equally curious ; and a stranger might at first sight
suppose himself thrown into a crowd of mimes and maskers.

Mercantile men, and others of intelligence settled in Malta,
speak several languages with fluency. English, Italian and
native Maltese are indispensable, and I have been struck with
the facility with which children acquire a knowledge of those
tongues. They seem to get them by intuition, at least with as
much ease as boys, in common with us, of the same age would
learn one. At the house of a friend where I dined a day or
two since, an interesting little girl about four years old made her
appearance at the time of the dessert, who talked with her father
in Italian, her mother in English and to the nurse who was in at-
tendance, in Maltese. She had acquired this faculty simply by
the ear. It was surprising with what readiness her little tongue
slipped from one language to another as conversation required.
Shop-keepers have much the same dexterity ; and among gen-
tlemen, the acquisitions of language are much more considerable.
I have formed an acquaintance with one, — a merchant who
has passed some years in Constantinople, — who to the lan-
guages already named, adds a knowledge of French, Greek,
Turco and pure Arabic. I had supposed that the Russians

126 MALTA.

were the most apt linguists among modern nations ; but from
what I have hitherto learned and observed on this island, 1 am
inclined to think that the Maltese may fairly dispute the palm
with them. Their familiarity with so many spoken tongues
may be partly explained by the conveniences of business and
social intercourse, but doubtless much is owing to certain organic
facilities in the vocal powers.

The resident English population on the island, aside from the
military, is computed at seven hundred. I have already been
introduced to several agreeable families, and been treated with
genuine hospitality. There is courtesy without parade, and the
samples exhibited, present a pleasing picture of the state of
society among the better classes.

Of Jews, — those outcast children of the ' father of the
faithful,' whose condition I always contemplate with interest, —
I find but few permanently established in Malta. They are not
estimated at above one hundred in all. In general they are
pretty well off, and it is singular that they bear no larger pro-
portion to the mass of the population. They have no synagogue,
but on their Sabbath they celebrate in a private house the rites
of worship after the usages of their forefathers.

The Greeks of Malta form a much more considerable body.
Numbers of them are lineal descendants from the generous
Rhodian families, who followed the fortunes of the brave L'Isle
Adam and his unfortunate companions in arms, on their retreat
10 Malta. It was in 1523 that the knights were driven from the
island of Rhodes, a possession which they had held since their
expulsion from the Holy Land ; and which they had signalized
hv exploits of valor, even in their unsuccessful resistance to the
power of Solyman, scarcely less memorable than their subse-
quent achievements as defenders of Malta. In return for the
devoted constancy of the self-exiled Rhodians who accompanied
them, a free toleration was allowed of their rites of worship. A
church was built in which divine service according to the modes
of the Greek religion, has continued to be solemnized. In
addition to this, another church has been erected for the accom-

CHURCHES. 127

modation of Greek Catholics, the service being the same with
that of the Romish ritual, bat on!y performed in the Greek instead
of the Latin tongue.

Contemplating the concourse of nations represented in Malta,
I am surprised that my own country has scarcely a native citizen
beside myself on the island. The little missionary family, con-
sisting but of two adults, is the only case of exception. Even
the consul and his deputy are native Maltese. The officers and
crew of the North Carolina are either on board, or at the Laza-
retto. Our commercial ships which touch here, seldom remain
long enough to take pratique. Their business is transacted
through the Parlatorio, and they are generally off long before
their terms of quarantine expire. 1 was not exactly prepared
for this state of things. Looking upon my country as she may
be well considered, the Carthage of this modern age, — especially
in reference to Great Britain the parent Tyre, — the fact struck
me at first as singular. 1 feel quite isolated, but, thank God,
not like the remnant of Knights Hospitallers, denationalised.
And if a depression of spirits from a sense of solitariness some-
times steals over me, I am cheered by the remembrance of a
country and home in the Hesperides beyond the Western wave,
and in the hope of a return thither at no distant day, am content
to remain awhile longer — ' a looker-on in Venice.'

Feb. 9. — A stranger if called to state his first impressions
of the religious character of this people, might accommodate the
language of an apostle and say. Ye men of Malta, I perceive
that in all things ye are very superstitious. ^^

Besides shrines, crucifixes, and other such objects of rever-
ence in the city and environs, there is in Valetta alone a score
of churches with open portals frequented every hour of the day.
First comes the cathedral of St John's the Metropolitan, then
the churches St Paul's, St James', Sta Barbara and Sta Catha-
rine. The Carmelites, Franciscans, Capuchins, Dominicans
and Augustinians have their several chapels and oratories, (and
spacious ones they are;) and if last not least, the religious
structure of Al Jesu commemorates the pious munificence of

1 28 MALTA.

the ancient order of the Jesuits. These edifices I have thus
far counted up, in addition to the Government church, — the
churches of the Greek Catholics and Schismatics, and several
missionary chapels in private houses.

The Catholic bells are busy through the day. They com-
mence ringing at four in the morning, and do not stop till the
evening chime, whose melancholy tones perpetually recall
the Spanish Los Animos. If we add to these sounds, the
striking of the hours and the quarters, — (and as though this
were not enough, the announcement is accompanied from some
of the towers with a flourish of several notes for each stroke,)
it may be said almost literally that the bells of Malta never rest.
Some of them utter a tinkling, others a hoarsely graiing, and still
others a deep sonorous sound ; but all are emulous to be heard,
and to bear their part in the tuneful concert. There is a little
too much of such music to be altogether entertaining. But at
length the ear becomes accustomed to it, and the bells ring on
without being heeded.

But do all the Catholics walk the rounds of these numerous
churches ? Not at all ; each goes to his own, and it is only on
festival days that the population join heart in hand in honor of a
particular saint, and then crowd to the same shrine. At other
times, they resort at a convenient hour to their respective places
of worship, to unite in the celebration of mass ; but I find that
on week days the attendance is chiefly made up of females, —
in other words, the ' devout women not a few.' The most scru-
pulous of the devotees are very careful about their matins.
They are abroad at the first summons which might be called a
night-bell, as morning does not break till after its peal is rung.
But even at so early an hour, the numbers who muster are very
considerable.

Aside from the duty of mass, there is the confessional to be
attended to. In the larger churches there are two or three
boxes of this description, and I seldom enter them without
seeing one or more whispering their secret sins in the ear of a
priest Then, there are the offices for the dying and the dead.

CLERGY. ' 129

If a priest goes to administer the last sacrament to a departing
soul, he moves with noise and state. A procession, bearing
' taper and host and book,' goes with him. His anointed head
is canopied. A bell rings his advent, and as the procession
passes, every head Is uncovered and every knee bent.

As for the priests themselves, their number is ' Legion, for
it Is many.' I meet them at every turn ; I mean, including the
friars, — black, white and gray. I know It is common to rail
against this order of men as being a race of gourmands ; yet it is
not for the sake of joining in an idle cry, but of testifying to
impressions gathered by my own eyes when I assert, that a
better conditioned set of persons 1 never beheld. Their fat
sleek visages and plump well-fed frames betoken, that whatever
becomes of others, they take good care of themselves. I have
seen them of all ages, from fourscore years down to four ; for
even children are dedicated to the priesthood, and once dedi-
cated, they wear the self-same garb in shape and colour as do
their superiors In years.

A more whimsical dress than this professional costume when
put upon boys and striplings, can hardly be conceived. It
consists of a large cocked, or three-cornered hat, the brim of
which is unusually broad, — a full skirted coat, ornamented with
a single row of buttons, and made rounding from the waist
downwards, like a quaker's, — a long, old fashioned vest, but-
toned to the chin, — tight small clothes and black hose, silk or
worsted, — shoes high on the Instep with monstrous buckles, —
a black leathern stock about the neck, and over it a frill of white
lawn made to lap close. In cold or wet weather a black cover-
all, something like the cloaks of the old puritan clergy of New
England, is added. The heads of these clerical sprigs are
partly shaved in imitation of their seniors.

It is not without a smile that such figures are seen brushing
through the streets. To call them priestlings would be hy no
means a sufficient diminutive. They are Tom Thumbs in
ecclesiastical livery, and can scarcely be distinguished sometimes
as they move along under their brosd-spreading equllaterals*

130 MALTA.

Their appearance is certainly a burlesque on the Catholic
priesthood.

There are several grades, however, for these ' babes and
sucklings' to pass through, ere they are formally fraternized.
At sundry periods of life, — as for instance ten, fifteen, eighteen
or twcntyone years of age, — they are interrogated and examined
afresh in respect to their ultimate purpose, and if dissatisfied
with the choice made for them by their parents, they are at
liberty on coming to their majority to withdraw from the clerical
ranks. But this seldom happens. I cannot find on careful
inquiry that they are taught much ; certainly, very litde of useful
knowledge. I express but the sober sense of intelligent lay
Catholics themselves, when I say that, in general, the priests,
young and old, are scandalously ignorant. They pick up a
smattering of Latin, and are taught the drill of church forms and
ministrations. A little of scholastic divinity and some scraps of
ecclesiastical history are then ground into them ; and they are
turned out for the service of the altar. They exhibit a vacuity
of countenance quite expressive of the emptiness of their minds ;
and withal, that bloating and fulness of cheek already noticed,
which denote if their brains be attenuated, something else is well
stuffed.

I speak of the appearance of the major part, at least seen abroad.
And in truth it is enough to fill one with indignation to behold
these priests sauntering in the city, or riding their mules with a
careless air into the country, often with a pipe or cigar in their
mouths, and faces betokening by their shine the good cheer
which they daily feed on, — while so many miserable fellow
beings, whose poverty is ascribable in a great measure to those
church locusts devouring every green thing, are strewn along the
streets without clothing, food, or the means of occupation. Yet
I have seen many priests importuned by these poor creatures with
the cry of carita ! carita ! and I do not remember but a solitary
instance when the supplication was in the least degree heeded.
Then only a grain or two were dropped into the tremulous with-
ered hand, held out for the pittance. In fact, like the priest

POLICY OF RULERS. 131

and Levite in the parable, these ministers of a gospel of mercy
turn a deaf ear to the cry, and a blind eye to the miseries of the
starving wretches around them, and pass by on the other side.

The disproportion of priests to the general mass of society
here, is an evil not likely to be soon checked or cured. For in
the dearth of other profitable employments, every family of the
better sort in which are several children, has one boy at least set
apart for the church. The candidate for the priesthood has only
to be possessed of the clear annual income of three pounds ster-
ling. He is then sure, once within the pale of the church, of
drawing at least eight pence a day from a public fund which, as
he cannot marry by the canons of his order, is quite enough in
a place of such plenty and cheapness as Malta, to insure him
support. This allowance is exclusive of various contingent per-
quisites, and the stipend which he would derive as a fixed cure.

If England displayed good policy in a worldly point of view
in guaranteeing the privileges of the Cadiolic hierarchy in Malta,
she is censurable for her toleration of many gross abuses thereby
entailed, which she had the power of correcting on coming into
possession of the island. The French pursued a different
course during their short occupation of Malta. They paid little
respect to the clergy, seized upon a large pordon of their reve-
nues, broke up several convents, and began to distribute both
employment and bread to the poor. A new aspect was given
to the condition of society, and many changes which were
wrought were useful and humane. They dislodged the Augus-
tinians from their church in the city, and confined them to a
monastery at Medina, a dozen miles off, where still they had
room and to spare ; and meanwhile the church was converted
into a receptacle for foundlings. The nuns of Magdalena were
also removed to the convent of Sta Catherina, and their former
establishment was appropriated to a general hospital. I could
name other changes equally beneficial, projected if not accom-
phshed by the French, which have come to my knowledge.
But the march of improvement was soon arrested by the siege ;
the sufferings of which, endured for two long years, being attri-

132 MALTA.

buted by the natives to the French, at length alienated the minds
of many from them. Besides, too litde attendonhad been paid
to conciliating or rather confirming the attachments of the
Maltese, after the island had fallen into the hands of the Republic.
If the troops of the latter could not respect, they certainly should
not have insulted, as they often did, the Catholic priesthood.
The sacrilege committed on the church of St John, in dismant-
ling it of many of its venerable and precious ornaments and
plundering its treasures, could not be forgiven. The priests
mingling with the populace during the siege, tried to foment in
their bosoms a strong and very general dislike of their new
masters ; and at length there was a party ready to make over the
island to the British, with the same facility as was shown by some
of the knights in opening its gates to the forces of the Directory.

The English in treating for its surrender, availed themselves of
the superstitions of the natives and the known ascendency which
their priests possessed over them. They stipulated that the
Catholic religion should be fully honored and recognised ; that
all its rites and forms should be scrupulously respected ; that its
churches should be restored, and not so much as one be retained
even for Episcopal worship ; that its clergy should enjoy all their
dignities and revenues, and that all ecclesiastical nominations and
appointments should vest entirely in the Holy, Roman, Apostoli-
cal See. Thus the Maltese under the conduct of their ghostly
advisers, were induced to submit to the British yoke, but
they have little to plume themselves with respect to the benefits
of the exchange. The English do not interfere indeed with the
religious faith, forms and usages of the islanders, but they look
passively on while the church is grinding them to powder. A
full third of the property of all Malta is held by the priests.
Little of the income once received returns to circulate among
the people. It is a current which, setting in one direction,
seldom regurgitates. Nay, a portion of it is wholly lost to the
island, as it flows into the great pontifical treasury at Rome.

In former times, there was a considerable disbursement of
jjie moneys collected annually by the church. The grand mas-

SPIRITUAL COURTS . 133

ter, moreover, living with almost regal munificence, circulated
large sums in Malta. The knights brought their personal
revenues with them, and these going into the general treasury of
the Order, were expended for the costly maintenance of the
several Companies into wliich they were divided. The nume-
rous prizes taken from the infidels, and carried into the ports of
Valetta, added to the public stock of wealth ; and money was
disseminated in a thousand channels among the native popula-
tion. The sources of that prosperity are chiefly dried up. It
is natural to con^pare past with later times, and the contrast
offers small matter of contentment with the present order of
things. The Maltese sigh for the recurrence of the good old
days, when the Knights Hospitallers were their patrons and
sovereigns. They now bewail the destruction of their Order.
They speak of them with mingled gratitude and veneration,
and dislike the English more cordially, in consequence of
the love no less than enthusiastic, which they cherish for their
former masters, the chevaliers of St John.

The priests have a hold on the people through the medium
of their ancient superstitions, but they enjoy and deserve not
much of their love. In Malta there is a Bishop's court, in which
all causes, civil or criminal, against a priest can alone be tried.
It would be reasonable to expect that, from such a tribunal, jus-
tice would not always be dispensed with an equal hand. The
feelings of the court would naturally side in favour of an eccle-
siastic. The credit of the church would be concerned in up-
holding him. His condemnation would be an acknowledgment
of the fallibility and culpableness of one of the order, and, by
authorizing such a stigma, might justify a want of confidence in
the whole. Decisions have been made of glaring partiality, so
much so, that few men, having cause of complaint against a priest,
would now go before the Bishop's court. If peradventure he
should gain his point, the priest has the right of appealing to
Rome, — a right seldom or never waived, — and the expense to
the other party of following up the suit in that quarter, together
with an increased distrust of the kind of hearing which would be

1 34 MALTA.

there obtained, occasions the matter to be generally abandoned.
If it be one of great outrage, it is sometimes hushed up by a
left-handed compromise.

A case of extreme turpitude has just occurred. A priest,
having tampered in vain with the chastity of a young female of
fifteen, and desj)airing of obtaining her consent to his vile pur-
poses, at length attempted to accomplish his object by brutal
force. Happily, her cries alarmed some persons in the neigh-
bourhood, who succeeded in rescuing her from her ravisher. A
crowd was collected, who were fired with indignation at the
story of the poor girl's wrongs, and it was with great difficulty
that the villain escaped to the asylum of an adjacent convent.
The excitement was very strong for some hours following, and
it was only on the promise that he should be certainly delivered
up to trial at another time, that the wrath of the multitude was
partially appeased. The opinion however is, that the criminal
will be privately sent off the island, and no public inquest be
had of the flagitious transaction.

Affairs of this sort, with the difficulty of gaining redress, must
weaken very sensibly the attachment of the people to the per-
sons of their priests. Still they cling to the forms of religion
whose rites they administer, with unshaken constancy, and be-
lieve its institutions to be divine. But their shyness in dealing
with the clergy in matters of a private worldly nature is very
curious. A monk or a priest is a slippery bargainer ; and it is
not often that they are trusted where a common voucher, or the
word of honour from a man of business, would pass unques-
tioned. I should not leave the topic without adding, that
as the Bishop's court is that which alone can take cognizance of
causes instituted against a priest, so there is another court, under
the government jurisdiction, wherein suits brought by a priest
against a layman, must be tried. It may fairly be presumed,
that justice would there be dispensed according to the rules of
strict honesty ; but the cases are few which come up for its ad-
judication at all. Whereas, the ecclesiastical court holds to its
prerogative of deciding all actions or prosecutions levied against

PAPAL INFLUENCE. 135

a c?encaZ party ; and the expediency of shielding the hierarchy
from scandal, with other motives too obvious to be specified,
must ever materially bias the course of arbitration.

It may be said that the ascendency of the church must have
been as unqualified under the old regime, as the present. But the
fact was otherwise. The knights interfered between the pi-iest-
hood and the people, and were accustomed to protect the interests
of the latter. They looked with jealousy on every attempt
at encroachment by the court of Rome, through the agency of
any of its officials. Theirs was the sovereignty of the island ;
and they pertinaciously resisted all endeavours by the Pope, or
his representatives the bishops, to share the jurisdiction of Malta.
Anciently, the supreme council of the order of St John's decid-
ed upon everything, even relating to articles of faith and religion.
And when at length an inquisitor was sent among them by
Gregory XIII., they withstood his ordinances, and all his preten-
sions to domestic interference. The Grand Master remained
chief; and neither pontiff, bishop, nor inquisitor-general was per-
mitted to hold independent or even secondary jurisdiction. The
people were accordingly saved from many arbitrary impositions
and exactions. Their hard earnings were not all drained to
pamper the luxury of a swarming, slothful clergy ; and the
moneys liberally circulated among them by the chevaliers, with
other privileges and immunities which they enjoyed under their
protection, made them bless the sway of such generous patrons
and defenders.

The English have managed very differently, and made com-
mon cause with the priests. It is Pontius Pilate united with
Herod, and both arrayed against the children of this unfortunate
isle ; though Herod still takes precedence in matters of eccle-
siastical prerogative. The English, having found their account
in pursuing a similar policy in Lower Canada, have adopted it
without restriction here ; and while Popery is trampled upon,
spurned and denounced in Ireland, — in Malta and the North
American colony, it is upheld with utmost deference. The
Roman pontiff may well felicitate himself in having the nominal

1 36 MALTA.

sovereignly of Malta vested in the hands of Protestant John
Bull. A better ally, or rather a tamer auxiliary and helpmeet,
he could noi desire. Not only does the Pope appoint without
question to all the richer benefices, — such as bishoprics, arch-
deaconries, prebendaries and priories, — he exercises his dis-
credon when vacancies occur, in respect to the term of their
duration, and sweeps into his own coffers the revenues accru-
ing during such intervals. England is meanwhile content with
parcelling to herself the old possessions of the Maltese knights,
without any offset to the people at large; and as for the
Protestant faith, she lets that take care of itself. I have men-
tioned the Grand Master's stable as the only place of Episcopal
worship on the island ; and lest it should be too much fre-
quented, seats are let in it at the annual charge of five guineas.
The Marquis of Hastings, late Governor General of Malta, was
so ashamed of this state of things, that he projected and laid the
foundation of a noble government church. He had proceeded
so far as to expend £2000 on the work, when the Foreign
Office in London, understanding his intentions, sent down an
order to have the enterprise forthwith discontinued. Of course
nothing more could be done, and things remain just as the
Marquis was obliged to leave them. The reason assigned for
such interference and opposition by the government at home, was
its pecuniary inability to defray the further disbursements ne-
cessary to the undertaking. Yet the same government can
afford to pay the present governor of Malta, General Ponsonby,
£4000 annually, with an allowance of perquisites worth half as
much more ; and to its admiral in this sea, now quartered at I^a
Valetta, the yearly revenue of £5000. The last sum is
nearly equal to the salary of the President of the United States,
and six times greater than that of the American naval comman-
der on this station.

I have spoken of the drain of moneys which goes annually
into the Papal treasury, and is consequently lost to Malta ; but
I have indicated merely one of the oudets, namely, the requisi-
tion of arrearages from vacant benefices. A second is the quasi

SECTS. 1 37

impost of bonuses charged on all incumbents appointed to the
richer livings in Malta. A third is made up of the fees exacted
for dispensations of marriage, which happen within the prohib-
ited degrees of relationship. Such dispensations can only be
obtained by the wealthy ; but where there is money enough,
they may be had to sanction alliances though contracted within
the bounds which other laws than those of Rome assign to cases
of incest. Next come the emoluments derived from suits car-
ried up by appeal to the Pontifical court. They are by no
means confined to cases in litigation between individuals, but
involve disputes between religious houses, such as churches or
monastic institutions. Without mentioning other sources of
gain, 1 will confine myself to illustrating the operation of the
last.

It is a fact worth premising, that though the Romish church
boasts to be one, in opposition to the multitude of Protestant
sects, it is in truth made up of rival and contending denomina-
tions like the parfies enrolled under the banners of the Refor-
mation. Those denominations are bound together, indeed, by
a general submission to the Roman See and their acknowledg-
ment that the Pope is infallible ; but the sects of Protestant-
ism are likewise united by their common recognition of the
sole authority of the Scriptures, and their allegiance to that
great principle of their order, the right of private judgment.
This I mention principally for the sake of showing that there is
no such thing as coercing human opinions. The whole power
of the church of Rome, even acting on its favorite maxim that
ignorance is the mother of devotion, cannot make its subjects
think, believe, and move as One. It is an empty vaunt, which
she puts forth in maintaining the unity of her members, in oppo-
sition to the parti-coloured ranks of Protestantism. Diversities
of sentiment, jealousies and strifes prevail perhaps equally in
both. Each has a generic name, with specific difierences. If
the former are all Catholics, so the latter are all Protestants.

Contests have accordingly run high between the churches of
Malta. It is not long since the Cathedral of St John was at
18

1 38 MALTA.

issue with St Paul's, and the points of disagreement could only
be settled by reference, as usual, to the Pontifical tribunal.
When they were adjusted, St Paul's, — I mean the church
of that name in La Valetta, — took umbrage at some of the
pretensions of St Paul's at Medina. The second, situated in
the old Metropolis of the island, and on or near the supposed
site of Publius' house, claimed supremacy. Its monks con-
tended for precedence in processions, and for the privilege
of wearing a finer cross than those of St Paul's at La Va-
letta. These seem to have been the most material points in
contest ; if others there were, they have not yet come to my
knowledge. Such grave matters naturally required a more
dispassionate consideration than could be had at Malta. They
were submitted to his Holiness at Rome. This was about the
year 1820. The cause was pending for the three following
years, and cost the parties the round sum of 35,000 Maltese
crowns. It was at last settled that St Paul's of Medina should
take precedence of its rival at La Valetta on all state occasions,
but that the priests of the latter should be distinguished by a
better kind of crucifixes, or a richer badge of some sort. A
branch of the mother church was extended to the modern cap-
ital ; and a corps of the prebends of the Old city is now quietly
installed in the New.

But I am weary of dwelling on these topics. I may refer to
some of them hereafter as materials may accumulate ; and in
forming my opinions as well as in noting my observations, I shall
endeavour, if nothing be extenuated, ' yet to set down nought in
malice.'

Feb. 10. — By one of those chances which sometimes turn
up unexpectedly in favour of a tourist, I find myself in Malta at
the era of the great religious celebration in honour of St Paul.
The present day is set apart in the calendar as the anniver-
sary of the apostle's shipwreck ; and an opportunity has thus
been afforded me of witnessing the most striking ecclesiastical
pageant which popery has here instituted. The event com-
memorated, was suitable for solemn observance of some sort ; but

ST PAUL'S FESTIVAL. 139

whether the ceremonies which were practised were the most
appropriate in reference to moral uses, is a matter of question.

The festival commenced by a prelude last evening, when the
church of St Paul was splendidly illuminated ; but the grand
display was reserved for today. After mass celebrated this af-
ternoon with unusual pomp, the preparations for a great solemn
procession took effect. All the monkish fraternities in Valetta
joined in the ceremony, and the whole machinery of the hierar-
chy was put in requisition to make it stately and impressive.
The citizens were not behind in their zeal to testify respect for
the solemnity. The front of the lofty houses along the principal
streets through which the procession was to pass, were hung
with drapery of gorgeous hues, trailing to the pavement. Strada
Paolo with its proud old structures, of an architecture grand
though fantastic, looked magnificently with these decorations.
Windows and balconies were filled with spectators, and a crowd
of devotees occupied the square and hung upon the avenues
connecting with the church whence the procession was to issue.

First choosing a station among the last, I was placed to see
with advantage the order of the opening ceremonial. The
wide-spread portals of the church, St Paolo, disclosed the inte-
rior lighted with innumerable tapers: and they were needed
notwithstanding the hour, for clouds of incense filled the spa-
cious nave and aisles. The various monastic orders, al] duly
marshalled, displayed, as they successively appeared, their robes
of pomp and state, except the Franciscans and Capuchins whose
vows of poverty permit no change of apparel on occasions the
most memorable. These walked bare headed with sandalled
feet, clothed with coarse brown cloaks, or rather frocks with
cowls, a girdle of rope about their loins, no linen to their collars,
and their rosaries and crucifixes of cheap and homely make.
They served as foils to the fathers who followed in sumptuous
array and with lordly bearing, and their downcast looks and
humble mein lost nothing of interest in contrast with the osten-
tatious air and demeanor of their successors. Each society
was distinguished by a banner splendidly decorated, exhibiting

140 MALTA.

the likeness of its founder or a painting of its patron saint, and
it was curious to observe that even the poor disciples of St
Francis vied in the showiness of that emblem, with the richest
and most aspiring of their fellow orders. Crosses, dazzlingly
gilt, were borne aloft in the procession. Censers, smoking
with incense, were carried in the respective companies and
waved from time to time in the air ; and those who were not
employed in bearing banner, cross or censer, were furnished
with tapers, which shone but dimly indeed in the broad light of
day.

When the van of the procession, extending up the street St
Paolo, had reached the summit, it paused to give time for the
main appendage of the pageant to be produced. This, it was
easy to perceive by the eager looks of the crowd around, was
expected with intense solicitude. It was no less than the image
of the apostle Paul, large as life, and fine as carving, and gilding,
and frippery could make it, which in no long time was lifted
from its recess and brought forth to view. It stood on a broad
platform, borne on the brawny shoulders of a number of men
who bowed under the heavy burden. The apostle was paraded
in full pontificals and in the attitude of preaching. His rai-
ment was widely different from that which he probably brought
ashore with him when cast by the waves upon yon coast — a
sign, perhaps, that the barbarous people would still show him no
little kindness. It resembled a tissue of pure gold. His head
was covered with a sort of cardinal's hat, I mean in shape, but
it was gilt all over like his drapery. His features — but I will
not describe them. They shocked all my notions of the looks
of the poor tent-maker of Tarsus.

No sooner was the apparition seen than the multitude knelt
with reverence and awe. Every head was uncovered. Eveiy
eye was fixed on the effigy. Their lips moved in devotion, and
not a doubt could there be, that they prayed to that statue as
their idol and their god, — prayed to it as truly, and as fervently,
as ever a votary in the old pagan superstitions worshipped an
image of Jove or Apollo. The bearers waited while the crowd

PROCESSION. 141

paid their homage. They then descended the great steps of the
church, and the procession set forth in body. The chief bishop,
mitred and on foot, followed the image, and a large company of
priests and officials brought up the rear.

The procession moved with solemn chaunt. The air was
redolent with the fuming incense. Bells ' tolled out their mighty
peal ; ' and with the symbols already named, — the waving ban-
ners, the gleaming crosses, the flowing vestments, and that gor-
geous shape of the apostle,

' High in the midst, exalted as a god,'

nothing was wanting to grace the passing cortege. Considered
as a spectacle, the effect was certainly imposing.

To behold it with greater advantage,! mounted, next, to a bal-
cony in a friend's house which commanded a full view of the
principal street, the appearance of which was scarcely less striking
than the moving show^ which perambulated through it. Crowds
were seen bending as the figure of the saint slowly advanced,
and even the groups in the windows and verandahs, dropped
on their knees or bowed in obeisance whilst the object was pass-
ing. The procession having moved through Strada Reale, de-
filed into a range of parallel streets and returning to the church,
St Paolo, delivered back in safety its precious charge to the
shrine whence it had been taken. There it will remain till
another anniversary shall call it forth to excite, in like manner,
the popular stare, and wonder, and veneration.

Returning home with a mind musing on the scenes just
witnessed, I asked myself. What conclusions I was war-
ranted to draw from them in relation to the influence of Chris-
tianity upon the natives of this island ? Do they furnish evidence
that the religious condition of Malta in the nineteenth century, is
an improvement on that of Melita in the first ? Has any essen-
tial change been wrought in it ? If any, is it for the better ?
To resolve the queries, I considered in the first place that
Christianity teaches that there is one God, i. e. one sole
Object entitled to religious worship ; that it forbids all manner of

142 MALTA.

idolatry, and goes hand in hand with the law of Moses in pro-
nouncing the idols of the nations to be but vanity. In the next
place, T could not mistake the evidence of my senses, that.a graven
image was this day worshipped by thousands in Malta. It was
evidence just as conclusive as would show that the prayers put
up in a protestant congregation are there addressed to the One
Infinite Spirit. Christianity then, I reasoned, has failed in its
first great end, the extirpation of idolatrous rites and worship
from the Maltese population.

I next looked back upon the state of things when Paul landed
upon the island. The natives were then called barbarians, but
so were all other people denominated by the Romans, at
least with the exception of the Greeks. The term simply de-
noted foreigners who spoke in an unknown tongue, and it implied
nothing of the nature of their condition, morally or polhically
viewed. That the inhabitants of Melita were by no means sav-
ages is abundantly clear. Religion, or some other principle, had
softened their hearts and humanized their manners. They kin-
dled a fire upon the beach for the comfort of Paul and his com-
panions, Publius, the chief of the island, received and treated
them courteously. And when they departed the people laded
them with such things as were necessary, and distinguished them
with many honours. ^^

Nor was this all. It appears that the ancient Maltese were
devout observers of the hand of Providence. When Paul was
bitten by the viper, they reasoned very judiciously and seri-
ously among themselves, — ' No doubt this man is a murderer,
whom, though he hath escaped the sea, yet vengeance suffereth
not to live.' They did not become, however, the helping exe-
cutioners of their sentence, like the officials of many a Holy
Office since. No act of unkindness is recorded of them ;
and they waited patiently ' a great while,' expecting the issue.
But when the venom of the reptile was found to be ahogether
harmless, and their guest remained unhurt, they changed
their minds, and cried out that he was a god. Now this a
Catholic would denounce as idolatry. But wherein does his

PERVERSION OF CHRISTIANITi^ 143

superstition differ from such idolatry ? Are not the descend-
ants of the old Maltese of similar minds with their fathers ? Was
not Paul, or what is w^orse, the mere image, — the effigy of Paul,
— venerated as a god this very day? Is there any difference in
the circumstances ? Or if there be, is it not in favor of the men of
the olden generation ? If the celebration today illustrated the
piety of the present race, did not the conduct of their ancestors
betoken quite as much piety, blended with something more of
sound sober sense ?

Alas, for the superstitions of this morally benighted isle !
When the apostle first set foot on yonder rugged strand — he
whose commission, wherever he went, was to warn men from the
evil of lying vanities and to turn them to the living God, — little
did he think that he, the creature, should be worshipped in
future ages by the natives of that very shore in place of the Su-
preme Creator. When the same apostle with Barnabas was at
Lystra, and the people, struck with a miracle which he had
wrought and the power of his preaching, would have offered
sacrifices to him under the title of Mercury, crying out in the
speech of Lycaonia, — The gods have come down to us in the
likeness of men, — he rent his mantle and rushing with his com-
panion amid the throng, exclaimed, ' Sirs why do ye these
things ? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach
that ye should turn to the living God who made heaven and
earth, the sea and all things which are therein.' Could that
herald of the religion from the Father of Lights rise from the dead
and walk through Malta, would not his soul be stirred with
holy indignation in seeing the city, as was Lystra of yore,
wholly given to idolatry, — nay, and seeing himself canonized
so conspicuously as an object of popular adoration ? Or could
pain touch the spirits of the sons of light, would not his bosom
heave with sorrow on looking down on the superstitions and de-
lusions of this misguided race, — on contemplating the faded
purity, the disfigurements and perversions of the doctrines he
here proclaimed, — on witnessing, in fine, the blindness of men's

144 MALTA

hearts, the darkness of thek souls ? — But the theme is too
sad to be pursued.

Do Thou, Immortal King, arise and reveal Thyself

as Thou wast declared by Moses and the prophets, Jesus and
the Apostles. Let the principles of that faith which they taught
and sealed through sufferings and blood, again break forth in
their native simplicity. And hasten the hour, when here and
universally Thou shalt be acknowledged as the Being of Be-
ings — clothed in Thine own incommunicable prerogatives of
supremacy and glory !

CHAPTER VI

MALTA.

Prosperity of Malta under the Order of St John. — Privileges of the People.

— Testimony of the Chevalier Ue Boisgelin. — Changes wrought on the
Face of the Island. — Balance of Trade, how adjusted. — Soil whence
obtained. — Retrospect of Rhodes. — Military Erections." — General Fore-
cast of the Order 5 its Valour. — Climate, and Fruits of the Season. — In-
ventive Shifts of the Inhabitants. — Mai,-quis of Hastings. — Greek Pirate.

— English Yacht. — Commerce of the Port. — Visit on Board the Revenge.

— Treatment of Convicts. — Danger in Former Times from Captives. — A
Peep Within Doors 5 Doings Without. — A Maltese Barber. — Beggars. —
An Anecdote.

La Valetta; Feh. 12. — The populousness of Malta is
truly wonderful. In 1798, the island alone numbered ninety
thousand inhabitants, and Goza twentyfour thousand. The
combined amount is about the same now, as the prevailing
estimates give from one hundred and ten, to one hundred and
fifteen thousand for the entire population. Malta and Goza, with
the petty isle of Cumino between, have a superfices of only one
hundred and seventy square miles. Assuming then the popu-
lation of 1798 as the sum at present, there are no less than six
hundred and seventy inhabitants for every square mile, congre-
gated on these rocks. This number is prodigious, and the ratio
is far greater than is anywhere else ascertained to exist. To
set the matter in a clearer light, I have placed in the Notes a table
showing the proportions of inhabitants to equal areas in the
various countries of Europe, at the time when the official
estimate of Malta, given above, was made. It will appear by
19

146 MALTA.

reference, that the population of this little territory is nearly
quintuple that of Holland on similar surfaces, and that Holland
is more than one third in advance of England proper. ^^

Such an aggregate of human beings on so limited a spot, is
evidence of the great and diffusive prosperity enjoyed under the
government of the Knights of St John. When L'Isle Adam and
his few brave follovi^ers landed here from Rhodes, there were
but twelve thousand inhabitants in all Malta ; and they were
reduced to ten thousand at the raising of the siege during the
grand mastership of La Valette. Seventy years afterwards, the
population amountedto fifty thousand, notwithstanding the ravages
of a dreadful plague towards the close of the sixteenth century ;
and since that period, despite of occasional pestilences and
almost incessant wars, it reached the extraordinary maximum,
as previously observed, of nearly six score thousand.

The income of the knights, together with the ample revenues
of their sovereign, being liberally expended among the Maltese,
diffused plenty and comfort through the island. The Order was
enriched by the private possessions which its members succes-
sively brought to it ; by annuities and largesses from potentates
whose commerce or whose territories were protected by its
valour ; by the prizes and ransoms obtained from the infidels; and
by divers other resources domestic and foreign. Property it at
length possessed in almost every country of Europe, distri-
buted into numerous commanderies, grand priories and bailiwics.
It held a long muster-roll of lands, tenements and funds, the
growth of successive investments throughout Catholic Chris-
tendom. Its establishments were counted by scores and fifties ;
and benefices too various to designate swelled the annual re-
ceipts of this renowned and flourishing Order. With such
means and with dispositions commensurate with their means, the
sources of prosperity, like fountains in a desert, broke forth on
the barren isle ; and soon the wilderness was glad for them,
and the solitary place rejoiced and blossomed like the rose.

The government of the Chevaliers, represented by the grand
master, if not strictly paternal was sufficiently beneficent ; the

SWAY OF THE KNIGHTS. 147

best proof of which is that the Maltese never murmured under
their jurisdiction. The knights had no rival interests in common
with the people to awaken jealousies. The latter were never
directly taxed ; they were constantly receiving favours from the
Order, and they naturally repaid their benefactors with praises
and blessings. No disputes could possibly arise among them,
since the very judges of the Maltese, as likewise their municipal
officers, were allowed to be chosen from among themselves. In
short, all civil employments, even those which related to the
finances, were filled by the natives. The sovereign alone had
the right to send his representative to the tribunals and the Town
Hall ; and here again, to bar the chances of corruption, the knight
who was deputed to the courts of justice in behalf of the grand
master, was not only changed once in three years, but his place
was successively filled by one of a different nation.

To explain the countervailing tendency of such a precaution
It should be observed, that the knights of St John were divided
into eight classes named after the different countries of their
birth. These were Provence, Auvergne, France, Italy, Ger-
many, Castille, Arragon, and anciently England ; but when
Harry VIII, abolished the Order in his dominions, the English
class took the name of Anglo-Bavarian. The popular designa-
tion of the whole was that of the Eight Languages.

The knights though bound in strictest allegiance to the general
of their Order, and united in common cause against their sworn
foes the infidels, were not strangers to mutual intrigues and
jealousies. If they respected the office, they were not always
attached to the person of the grand master ; and the knights of
different Languages, aside from the fortunate one whence he was
chosen, would not be ambitious of consulting his private will,
should he wish to exert any sinister bias on the decisions of a
tribunal where a deputy might preside. For the most part,
however, the grand masters were too highminded to entertain
such narrow desires, and the Maltese were fearless of corrupt
designs and interferences from that quarter.

148 MALTA.

In addition to these things, there were numerous institutions
expressly directed to the encouragement of industry among the
Maltese, or the relief of sickness, infirmity and misfortune. The
pursuits of agriculture, of trade and commerce, the arts of mani-
pulation, the building and refitment of the galleys and galliots of
the Order, preparation of armaments and stores, — these and
numberless other calls for labour furnished constant employment,
and money was ever at hand duly to remunerate it. The hum of
industry resounded through the island ; and for a series of gene-
rations the Maltese enjoyed an almost uninterrupted tide of
prosperity. I have already referred to the great increase of
their population, unprecedented within limits so straitened, as
proof of such prosperity ; but the fact of their uniform quietude
under the sway of the order of St John, may be cited as evidence
equally conclusive. The Chevalier de Boisgelin, who wrote at
the close of the last century, has asserted that up to the disastrous
events of 1798, the Maltese people never manifested the least
signs of turbulence or disafl^ection against the government. They
took no advantage of the divisions which sometimes prevailed
between the rival commanderies ; and when the island was at
length betrayed to the French, the guilt of the treachery laid not
with the lower classes but in the higher ranks. Though the
chevalier hesitates to affix the stigma, yet the fact is incontestable,
that a few recreant knights, led on by a master spirit, — {quan-
tum mutatus ah illo Hectore, — alas, how changed from the
character of old !) — these were the men who basely surrendered
their noble possession. Malta fell indeed ; but it was not the
trophy of the valour, but the gold of the French Republic.

I have read with feelings of lively sensibility the memoirs of
the Order, which have been transmitted by the amiable historian
whose authority I have just had occasion to quote. And though
I am by no means a blind admirer of the establishment with
which he was enrolled, and though his quartos display too much
the air of studied and affectionate panegyric, yet his statements
in the main are supported by collateral testimony. Many of his

TRANSFORMATION OF THE ISLAND. 149

recitals are given with touching pathos, and the inference none
can dispute, that the abolition of the government of the Knights
Hospitallers was an event most deplorable to the Maltese them-
selves. De Boisgelin has followed too servilely, perhaps, Vertot
and others, whose glowing accounts particularly of the famous
siege by die Turks should be received with some grains of
allowance ; but his work on the whole is a repository of valuable
historical remains, which like the fragments of an ancient golden
bowl inscribed with feats of lofty heroism, he piously gathered
up, and has handed down for our respect and veneration. I
anticipate this tribute to the merits of an author, — himself one
of the latest relics of a fallen but illustrious Order, — as I may
have occasion hereafter to refer to his memoirs, especially when
I come to speak of the more riiemorable achievements of these
renowned ' Paladins.'

If there be meaning in the proverb, that a man is a benefactor
to his species who makes two blades of grass to grow where but
one was produced before, then what praise is due to the creative
industry of those who have clothed the rock of Malta with un-
equalled fertility and abundance, Everytliing in its visible
wonders has been wrought out since the island became the
property of the knights. For although its shores had been
trod successively by Tyrians, Carthaginians, Romans and
Saracens, though they had planted their colonies and scattered
some seeds of art and civilization, the traces of their occupancy
had nearly all passed away, save what was left of the last in the
character of the population; and at this day the vestiges of their
ancient footsteps are faded and gone. A new era commenced
when the ensign of St John was lifted over Malta. The rock
became 'instinct with life.' A handful of people that had
gained but a scanty and precarious subsistence, swelled and aug-
mented to tens of thousands in the enjoyment of exuberant plenty.
As we look back on those times, prodigies, like those in Horeb,
seem to rise in review before us. Water, indeed, was not miracu-
lously brought forth for the use of the people. It gushed already
from a hundred springs in the valleys. But the language of the

150 MALTA.

sacred historian can be safely applied, — ' they sucked honey
out of the rock and oil from the flinty rock.' ^'' The productions
in wheat, barley, cotton, esculent roots, the various fruits of
fields, gardens and orchards, became immense ; and with the
exception of the first, they were not only ample for home con-
sumption, but formed articles of considerable exportation abroad.
The enterprise of the people accomplished other wonders. It
was not long before a regular and magnificent city, surround-
ed with noble suburbs, was built on a rocky promontory.
Sumptuous edifices arose both as places of worship, and as hos-
pitals for the reception of the poor and sick of every country.
Neat villages adorned the island ; roads were opened in every
direction ; while great numbers of country houses, from the
superb villa down to the peasant's rude but snug abode, erected
in different parts, announced the flourishing state of Malta.

The article of cotton strikingly shows the value of the pro-
ductive industry of the Maltese. I find on inquiry, that the
quantity of cotton spun in the island which was usually exported
every year, amounted in value to half a million of Spanish dol-
lars ; and this added to the manufactured goods and the home
consumption made up a sum of not less than six hundred thou-
sand dollars. The other exports consisted of barilla, oranges,
lemons, pomegranates, hquid honey, figs, seeds of various kinds, —
such as brocoli, melon, cumin, and anniseed, — besides conserves
of apricots and other fruits, orange-flower water, (a great deli-
cacy,) and preparations of similar sorts. They also made and
sent abroad ornamental articles of gold and silver fillagree, —
a beautiful manufacture in which they excel at this day. In
return, they imported large quantities of grain ; also wood, cloth,
wine and some other commodities. Still the balance of trade
was against them, owing to the great natural deficiency of bread
stuffs, especially when the population became excessive ; and to
meet that balance, there was no other resource, (but happily it was
a ready one,) than the specie disbursements of the treasury of
the Order, together with the moneys expended by the knights-
companions. Without such aid, the prosperity of Malta, (as the

DISBURSEMENTS — PROPERTY. 151

event has shown,) and the great abundance prevailing throughout
the island, could not for a moment be sustained. The Order, as
such, expended annually four millions of French livres. It
further appears that the expenses of the treasury amounted to
three millions, and that one million was spent by the companions
of different Languages, residing in the Convent. Here then was
cash, a sum in solid gold and silver exceeding a million and a
half of Federal dollars which was yearly distributed under the
government of the knights. The whole of this, — on a careful
net estimate, and in view of all circumstances, — the whole of
this, and much more has been lost to Malta during the last
thirty years. ^^

I do not deny that the British government expends large sums
annually in return for the occupation of the island. Malta,
everybody perhaps knows, is a heavy bill of cost to England. But
then its payments are chiefly made to its own citizens, and little
of its disbursements comes into the hands of this people. I find
that even British goods, which to the exclusion of other com-
peting articles are thrown into the markets of Malta, are sold
higher, (though something less than at Gibraltar,) than the same
things are vended in the shops of the United States. Besides,
England holds a third of the property, I mean of what is called the
real estate, of all Malta ; and this, together with the possessions
of her good friends the priests, amounting to another third, cuts
off a pretty large slice from the loaf. The remainder, were it
enough for the wants of the native lay Maltese, is nevertheless
engrossed chiefly by a few privileged orders, — for even Malta
is cursed by a titled aristocracy. Then, as for the people, aye,
the people, they must take care of themselves. How they
manage it, I know not ; and I doubt whether even his majesty
of England, or his holiness of Rome is one whit the wiser.

Having just spoken of the titled orders of Malta, I should
add that the number of nobles is eighteen or twenty, bearing
respectively the styles of marquises, counts and barons. The
richest of them has an income computed at two thousand
pounds sterling, an ample revenue for Malta. It is raised from

1 52 MALTA.

lands in the country and houses in town. The majority have
much smaller rentals, some of them not more than ten or twelve
hundred Sicilian dollars. Still this is by no means inconsiderable
in such a place. There are a few resident chevaliers who draw
their income from Sicily, of which country they or their ances-
tors were natives ; but from some cause they have taken up their
abode here. A republican of the new world is disposed to laugh
at such provincial nobility, as indeed at all, though it be of im-
perial creation — but how less than the least to any sober eye,
must appear the star and coronet of a Maltese counthood !

It is but fair to mention^ that the orders of noblesse were chief-
ly created under the government of the Grand Masters. It was a
system that worked well enough in their times ; but at the pres-
ent day it combines with the oppressions of the Church and
colonial government, to crush the people more heavily in the
dust.

I have some melancholy recitals to offer of the miseries of
the last. They are deferred to another date, should not my
pen continue to recoil from the record, as my heart has again
and again sickened at the spectacle. I cannot take a turn in
the streets, nor look from my windows, without witnessing such
wretchedness as makes my very soul to ache. En attendant,
I prefer to pursue my retrospect, and to look back on the bright
and sunny days which once smiled on Malta.

The transformation of the interior of the island from a rock
to a fruitful garden, was made when human industry had a suf-
ficient object, because the assurance of an adequate recompense
for its toils. But the solidity of many of the precautionary
works of former husbandmen, — of the walls, mounds and
basis of the soils, — insured them a lengthened duration. They
remain, and will remain, when children's children shall have
slept with their fathers.

From inquiries made since my arrival in Malta, and from
some personal observations, I have reason to doubt the opinion
prevalent elsewhere, that the soil of the island has, in whole or
in part, been brought from abroad. It has been asserted that

SOIL. 153

shiploads have been deported hither from Sicily. The story is
here denied. There was soil enough, or the materials for its
formation, in Malta. They had only to be variously disposed,
compounded and applied. The soft and porous nature of the
rock found below the surface, easily admits the roots of trees
to insinuate when they have once vegetated on the superincum-
bent earth 5 and under the forcing influences of a fervid sky,
with plenty of water at hand from numerous native springs to
irrigate the plants and herbs, a thin but genial soil is found
abundantly adequate for the purposes of cultivation. It proves
on trial to yield double, and of several products even triple crops
annually.

The process employed in the formation and arrangement of
artificial grounds is this ; — the Maltese begin by levelling the
rock, which, however, is allowed to incline a little, that all super-
abundant water may be drained off. They then heap together
stones, broken into pieces of an irregular form, which they place
about a foot deep, and cover with a bed of the same stones
nearly reduced to powder. This may be called Macadamizing ;
but the Maltese farmer has another object in view than that of
roadmaking. He proceeds to place on the stratum already de-
scribed a layer of earth, brought either from other parts of the
island or taken out of the clefts of the neighbouring rocks ; next
a bed of compost, and afterwards a second bed of earth. The
preparation is then completed. These plateaus not only cover
the originally barren plains of Malta, but are bolstered up by
walls, shaped into every possible angle, against all the declivities
of the hills. Such has been the perseverance of the proprietors
of these grounds, that they have made them equally productive
as the strongest natural lands.

So much for the inventive wonders of patient husbandry.
But in another point of view the face of Malta has equally
changed under the operation of its late masters. When the
knights received the island in fee from Charles V. it was almost
totally defenceless. The solo fortification which it boasted,
20

154

MALTA.

namely, St Angelo, was mounted only by one cannon, two fal-
conets, and some three or four iron mortars. Medina, the cap-
ital of the island, was a wretched burgh, or rather burrow,
hardly exceeding half a mile in circumference, its houses mostly
uninhabited, and the miserable walls which surrounded it were
open thirty paces in breadth. As for the natives generally, they
were in constant alarms from the frequent descents of corsairs,
who without the smallest sentiment of compassion carried off all
the unfortunate islanders who happened to fall into their hands.
This was the account given by the commissioners who were
sent to explore and report on the condition of Malta, when its
offer was made to the knights by Charles. It was a sorry gift,
deficient in one of the two requisites claimed in ancient times,
' earth and water. ' Water and rock was all it offered ; but
its noble harbours made some amends in the eyes of its gallant
recipients. They were strangers to fear, trusted for defence to
God and their own valour, and accepted the sovereignty of the
island as lords paramount. ^^

Yet if their hearts had not been strongly nerved, — were they
susceptible of the ordinary weaknesses of humanity, — with what
gloom of soul must they have contemplated the prospect before
them, and looked back on the proud heritage so lately wrested
from their hands. With what pain must they have thought of
Rhodes, that beautiful Rhodes, the joy and boast of their Order
through two centuries of glory, — Rhodes, whose lofty bulwarks,
— turres et alta mmnia, — had oft rolled back the tide of Otto-
man invasion. And how must their companions in exile, the
natives of that fair isle, have wept as they remembered their
pleasant homes, embosomed in citron groves, and placed amid
shading palms, and by limpid fountains and brooks, — leaving,
as they did, ' dulcia hmina atque amabilem larem.' ^^ It was
an hour of bitterness undoubtedly to some, but no unmanly tears
bedewed their cheeks. They girded themselves to the work
before them, and resolved in their hearts that the glory of their
latter home should surpass the fame, if not the beauty, of the
former.

MILITARY ERECTIONS. 155

Every point of the coast where a landing could be effected
by an enemy, was in time secured by competent defences. I
have counted from a map the names of no less than fortyeight
military erections in different stations along the shores of the
island, under the respective designations of Redoubts, Entrench-
ments, Castles, Forts and Batteries. The number by no means
includes all ; nor does it take in the defensive works constructed
within the line of coast, some of which are of great strength.
All these are exclusive of the towers of observation, and the
intercommunicating breastworks along the face of the shore.
Besides which, near the centre of the island which is crossed by
a chain of hills, a cordon of intrenchments was thrown up along
the top of the entire range. It consists of a solid wall, five feet
thick, with suitable embrasures for artillery, behind which the
troops were to fall back, if by any possible means (through
treachery or by surprise), the disembarkation of an invader
should be accomplished. The arrangements next were, if no
hopes remained of stopping the-progress of an enemy, that the
forces of the island should draw off or spike their cannon, and
retire into the Cotoner, an impregnable fortress situated just op-
posite to La Valetta. It was computed that with twentyfour
thousand men, all those points could be covered, and a disem-
barkation be utterly prevented ; and that with half that number,
Valetta alone could stand out against the most formidable as-
saults.

On a former page I have adverted to a very strange species
of ordnance cut out of the solid rock in various parts along the
coast, and intended to serve as mortars. They are called Fou-
gaces, and are indeed extraordinary contrivances. The perfo-
rations are large and deep, and their reported effects almost
startle belief. They are described by Brydone, and I confess
I read his account with a good deal of scepticism. However,
the statements given of them here are the same, and the man-
ner of employing them I have understood to be as follows :

A barrel of gunpowder is placed at the bottom of the cham-
ber, and a board put over the barrel so as to cover the whole of

156 MALTA.

the cavity. A great quantity of stones are spread over this
board reaching to the top of the fougace, and the powder be-
ing ignited by a match properly prepared, the stones are thrown
to the distance of several hundred fathoms. Such a shower of
hurtling missiles has the eifect not only of destroying lives, but
of breaking and sinking large barges. The impossibility of di-
recting them renders their effect less certain ; but the mouths
of the mortars being usually turned to the weakest part of the
coast, they are capable of injuring an enemy most essentially.
And should they miss their aim on one trial, they would inspire
great terror from an apprehension that a second attempt would
be more successful.

The forecast of the Order naturally anticipated the exigencies
of a siege, and spacious storehouses were constructed for grain
and other provisions. The former was preserved in very large
pits hollowed in the rock, with beds of wood and straw fitted
to the bottom on which the corn was spread. When the gra-
naries were filled, they were closed with large stones hermeti-
cally sealed with a composition of pozzolana. It is said that
w^heat kept in this manner might be preserved good for a hun-
dred years ; and I have heard of a pit which was discovered
after being forgotten for a great length of time, the grain of
which near the surface had alone suffered from damp, and the
rest proved in excellent condition. The English still make use
of the pits. Stores are constantly kept in them for two years'
consumption ; and they are capable, if need be, to hold a suffi-
ciency for five.

But under the Order, granaries were not confined to Malta.
As the island was not found to yield at the utmost of wheat more
than enough for a third of the year, large purchases were made
abroad. Sicily was bound by treaty to furnish annually a cer-
tain supply of corn free of duties. It was usual to store great
quantities of this to meet demands as they might arise ; and for
thai purpose the Order built magazines solely for their own use
at Palermo, Augusta and Girgenti, besides a granary still larger
at Marseilles. A storehouse of not less importance was erected

X VALOUR OF THE ORDER. 1 57

at Riposto, in Sicily, for preserving ice and snow, articles not
merely of luxury but of prime necessity in the sultry months,
particularly during the blowing of the Sirocco.

Such were some of the precautions for security and subsist-
ence which took place under the vigilant and energetic admin-
istration of the Maltese order. The island, from its naked and
defenceless state, with only the shadow of a castle for its protec-
tion, rose and expanded as it were into a vast fortress boasting
invincibility. It was a mighty torpedo, answering on the grandest
scale to some of the conceptions of our own Fulton, — with the
difference indeed that, unlike his terrible marine contrivances,
it could not move. The Ottoman felt once its touch, and never
tried it more.

The policy of the knights was not simply defensive ; it was
essentially warlike and aggressive. The Moslem power was
the sworn object of their hate and hostility. Their naval arma-
ments went forth to meet the foe ; and while they chastised the
Barbary States, overawed Egypt, scoured the coasts of Candia,
Cyprus and the Levant, they cruised to the jaws of the Darda-
nelles, and bearded the Turkish lion in his den. The series of
wars which from the first they waged against the Mahometans,
is a brilliant succession of military exploits. Whether in giving
way to an overwhelming force they retreated from Rhodes,
covered with the glory of having made a defence, itself a pro-
digy ; whether in braving at Malta the fury and valour of the
armies of Solyman, they, then and there, fixed the boundary of
the Ottoman career ; we see them displaying on all occasions
that lofty courage, that skill and perseverance, which transform
a handful of men into a most formidable host.

I confess it is at times with a kindling of feeling approaching
to enthusiasm, that I find my mind revolving on the deeds of
valour performed by these heroic spirits ; when I contemplate
their unshrinking intrepidity, their splendid chivalry and sublime
self-devotion. Proud they were, but it was a pride which
claimed preeminence in the post of danger. Theirs was a moral

158 MALTA.

courage which, if nourished in part by fanaticism, yet had its
root in the faith which is divine. It sustained them in the dark-
est hours, and stood unshaken in peril and in storm. Their
succours were generously lent to their brethren of the Christian
nations. Their squadrons were ever ready to be united with
others in opposing the common foes of humanity, civilization
and religion. The banners of St John shone conspicuous in
the front of battle, during every war betwixt the Christian
princes and the infidels. — And it was with no despicable ene-
mies with whom they plied the incessant strife. Venice often
knew the value of their aid. It was given at the onslaught
of Lepanto. Though a little before the navy of Malta had
been shattered and wasted by tempests, with its gallant rem-
nant the knights hastened to the conflict. On that glorious day
their galleys, conformably to the right of precedence, were sta-
tioned in the post of honour, and stood opposed to more than
double their force, though directed by the fierce Ucchiali, one
of the boldest of corsairs. Victory perched upon their stand-
ards ; and the pale Crescent grew paler that day beneath the
radiance of the star of the Order. ^^

Surveying the rise and glories of Malta under the sceptre of
so illustrious a race we may apply to it in relation to its w^ell
earned fame, what a Roman historian said of the greatness of
the seat of universal empire, — ' nee minor ab exordio nee ma-
jor incrementis ulla. ' But as poetry may better suit the tastes
of readers in general, the muse of Lord Byron may furnish us
with a fragment equally descriptive of Malta, as of the ancient
mistress of the Adriatic. ^^

' She looks a sea Cybele fresh from ocean,
Rising with her tiara of proud towers
At airy distance, with majestic motion,
A ruler of the waters and their powers :
And such she was; — her daughters had their dowers
From spoils of nations, and the exhaustless east
Pour'd in her lap all gems in sparkling showers j
In purple was she robed, and of her feast
Monarchs partook and deemed their dignity increased.'

Childe Harold, Canto 4.

CLIMATE. 159

Feb. 13. I am delighted with the temperature of this island.
The thermometer at noon is seldom below sixty degrees, and I
have known it considerably higher. The air is softer and more
balmy than with us at the same degree of heat. No rain has
fallen since my arrival in Malta, and the sky has usually been
free from clouds.

The present is the season of verdure and flowers. In my
rambles in the neighbourhood I have been astonished at the
profusion of wild blossoms which spot the green herbage. The
beautiful parade of Florian is clothed with a flowery mantle and
seems appropriately named. The air of the country is truly
odoriferous ; and nature arrays herself in the fairest charms,
and pours out an exuberance of sweets.

The air of Malta two or three months later becomes heated
and arid. The country then wears a different livery. The
maximum of heat, however does not appear to equal that of a
New England summer ; only here of course it is longer and
less varying. When the Sirocco, a Southeast wind, sets in
seriously, everything wilts under its oppressive influences. At
this time indeed it sometimes breezes from that quarter. I have
felt it already, but with my constitutional habit it has proved thus
far not unpleasant. The word is pronounced here Sheerok.

Twentyfive and twentyeight degrees of Raumer, as deter-
mined by metereological tables, give the general heat of a Mal-
tese summer. Converted into Fahrenheit, they show no greater
range than from eighty eight to ninety five degrees ; whereas
scarce a summer passes at Boston, without an occasional rise
of the mercury to ninetyeight and sometimes one hundred
degrees.

I have looked into the market and find it abundantly supplied.
Provisions of every kind are sold low, which is explainable by
the cheapness of labour and the extraordinary fertility of the
island, notwithstanding the many mouths to feed. Competition
also keeps them down ; besides, the poor being destitute of
money, are not the customers. They live by fishing, begging.

] 60 MALTA.

— I had almost said, fasting. The market is a table spread
with plenty, but not for them.

Every morning at various stalls fresh flowers in beautiful
bouquets are offered for sale. The roses are exquisite, and all
are arranged with great taste. A ha'penny or two will buy a
choice bunch.

Green peas have been on my table for several days. Oranges
garnish the dessert, fresh from the tree, and always with a few
leaves left about the stem. I have compared them with some
which I brought with me forced in the climate of a green-house,
not indeed in the expectation of their vieing with the fruit of
Malta, but as a pleasant souvenir of home, and for the sake
of bringing together the products of plants grown five thousand
miles apart. A yankee orange if it rivals in beauty, can hardly
aspire to the richness of the delicious varieties of Malta. — I have
seen some pomegranates, but being out of season, the flavour
was not good. The fruit of the Indian fig, (cactus opuntia)
is sold in great quanfities. It is as large as a pound pear. The
pulp is red and very pleasant. To come at this, an incision is
made through the rough rind by a knife, and cut crosswise. The
corners are then taken by the hand, and the coat is easily peeled
off*. This fruit sells cheap, and is eaten by the Maltese with
avidity. The plant grows here as in Spain to the size of a very
large shrub.

Abundance of fodder is daily brought to town in carts and
on jacks. Besides fresh grasses in bundles, barley is sold in
the green blade. It is not mowed but pulled up by the roots.
This seems a slovenly custom, but it is said to be convenient for
the better clearing of the soil. I have been amused at the
manner in which goats are fed. Their food is put in baskets
which are tied to their mouths by cords passed round their
necks ; and they have nothing to do but to walk about eating all
the while. These animals, by the bye, are led round to the
houses of customers, and milked from door to door. Families
must be assured of the freshness of their supplies, and can

HUSBANDRY. 161

have no cause to complain of deception in the quality. The
owner is saved the tax both of porterage, and of buying vessels
in which to take about the commodity. But it is doubtful
whether our milkmen will improve upon the hint, and com-
mence driving their cows through the streets of New York and
Boston.

The ancient custom of treading out the corn by oxen, is
still in use in Malta ; but I. would not recommend it. A pair of
good flails or a modern threshing machine is better. Neither
can I commend some of the Maltese implements of hus-
bandry. I have seen ploughs of very uncouth fashion. They
were made of two sticks of wood of unequal lengths, fitted and
riveted at one end so as to form a sufficient width of angle at
the other — -the longer and lighter stem being up, and fur-
nished with a handle. They are sharpened at the point of
intersection, and are there sheathed with iron or hardened by fire.
A bracket is placed between the sticks a little way back of what
may be called the coulter, and the instrument is complete.

There is another kind of plough, if possible still ruder. It
is made of two branches, or a natural knee, of a tree. The
bigger stem being placed lowest, smoothed at the bottom and
pointed at the end, serves for the share. The extremity, as in
the former sort, is sometimes hardened by burning. A cleet
under the upper limb prevents the accumulation of earth when
the plough is worked. An upright stick is nailed behind to be
used as a handle. Drays, harrows and manual instruments are
often quite as clumsy. As for cattle in husbandry, when mules
and steers cannot be commanded, donkeys are used and even
cows, — generally singly, but sometimes very oddly coupled.
A gentleman told me he saw the other day an ass and a cow
yoked together, contrary to a precept in a certain ancient code.
But the Levitical law, it seems, does not reign here. Necessity
knows no other than the law of liberty.

There are still other shifts. If a peasant be out o^ stock, tech-
ninally speaking, he tugs himself, in place of a team. I have seen
a man dragging a hurdle about a field to smooth and harrow
21

J 62 MALTA.

it ; and ploughs are drawn by two or more Maltese, when the
soil is light and ' feasible.' As for women, they are ready to
take the place of men, and if employment offers, there is no
drudgery to which the lowest do not willingly submit. They
toil in the gardens and fields, in digging, planting and tilling ;
and in town they work abroad quite as well. It was only yes-
terday that T saw a woman em-ployed in a smithery. She was
belabouring a red hot bar of iron, and the strokes resounded
from the anvil right merrily.

Game (feathered) is plentiful in Malta at certain seasons, but
being chiefly of the migratory sorts, it is irregular in its supplies.
I have remarked live partridges in the market exposed in cages
and baskets. Quails, plovers and Beccaficos, (i. e. figpeckers)
are esteemed the choicest birds. The first, it is said, are sure to
arrive in great numbers on the island at the autumnal equinox.
The old proverb that necessity, that is to say, want, is the
mother of invention is verified in the Maltese. They have ac-
quired the faculty of imitating the notes of different birds, and
catch them with surprising skill. They have also a very long
sight, and perceive falcons and others of the feathered race at a
wonderful height in the air. As ' shots,' they are called excel-
lent, and. seldom miss those birds which they do not succeed in
taking with nets.]

Falconry has been an object of considerable attention in
Malta. It flourished in the days of the Order, and has not totally
declined. It is a little curious that the knights received the
island on condition of sending annually a falcon to the emperor
Charles Fifth and his successors, in perpetuity. The English
probably, do not trouble themselves with heeding the stipula-
tion. But I find from a list of the expenses of the old Order
now before me, that down to its fall, the present of a hawk was
yearly made not only to the king of Spain, but to their majes-
ties of France and Portugal, not forgetting the viceroy of Sicily.
The cost of keeping up this ceremonial, i. e. in training and send-
ing the birds, amounted annually to more than a thousand Maltese
crowns, or four hundred and sixty dollars of our currency.

MARaUIS OF HASTINGS. 163

There is a beautiful public garden, out of the city on the side
of Florian. It would be thought with us a vast conservatory of
exotics. I have found there American aloes, date trees, ban-
nanas, yuuccas, fig trees, cactuses of various kinds, arbor-vitses,
Turkish cypresses and many other curious plants. A grand
terraced walk traverses its extent, and it is a very inviting spot.
Yet strange to say, it is less frequented than even the Almeda
at Gibraltar.

The airy and noble galleries on the corner bastions daily in-
vite a walk thither. The eye beholds from them a panora-
ma of grand and striking objects, and the reflections they furnish
I love to indulge.

On another quarter of the walls, (a rampart at the northwest
angle,) is the tomb of the marquis of Hastings. His body rests
there, but his heart has been sent to England. Over the tomb
is a large jnonumental slab, enclosed by a circular curb sixty
feet in circumference on which is built a strong iron railing.
Some trees are planted about the spot, chiefly evergreens, such as
cypresses and American white pines. The choice of the latter,
w^hich I have nowhere else seen abroad, is something singular,
though probably accidental. The marquis, when Lord Raw-
don, was so roughly handled in Virginia and the Carolinas that
one would hardly expect, if his taste had been consulted, that
any native of the American forest should be selected to grace
and shade his sepulchre. The pine is a beautiful tree, how-
ever, and abounding as it does in the south, must have often
attracted his notice and possibly his partiality. He liked it, un-
doubtedly, better than the men who sallied to meet him from
under its coverts. ^^

On the whole, Am.ericans have reason to be satisfied with
the marquis. While opposed to them he fought like a gallant
soldier, and when unfortunate submitted to his reverses with a
good grace. His letter to Mr Lee, the biographer, written
shortly before his death, is a fine production ; and the strictures
are offered in a manly but temperate spirit. He had many
valuable qualifies. His heart, while living, was in the right

164 MALTA.

place. And his marchioness, (who received it after his death)
undoubtedly thinks it is so now. Whether as Lord Rawdon
in America, Earl Moira in Ireland, or Marquis of Hastings
in India, he was devoted in his loyalty to his sovereign, and
never sullied his character for honour, probity and valour.

He rests alone amid monuments of glory ; and the tribute of
respect paid his memory, in giving him such a place of sepul-
ture, was well merited. He was popular in the government of
Malta. He did more than all others of its English rulers, —
the Balls and Maitlands not excepted, — to ameliorate and im-
prove the condition of the people. Several humane institudons,
founded or patronized by him, are honourable memorials of his
philanthropy. These will be described as they come in course
for inspection. The marquis would have done more good if
the government at home had permitted him. I have spoken
of his plan of a suitable church and the cause of its failure.
Since his death, the office which he held has been razeed from
that of governor-general, to a lieutenant-governorship com-
mandant.

The land force which the English keep here permanently, is
from four to five thousand men. It includes artillery and
native troops. Speaking of these, it should be observed that
the plan of raising soldiers adopted in India, is in trial among the
Maltese. A corps of natives answering to the Sepoys of the
East has been established, which numbers between eight hundred
and one thousand men. They make good looking soldiers, not
so stout as the English, but very active and capable. I have
seen them drilled and exercised. The corps is officered by
Englishmen, who give the words of command in their own lan-
guage, though little else is known of it by the troops themselves.

Feb. 14. — Today an English frigate arrived, bringing in a
Greek pirate. Such is the change of things ! No longer Turk-
ish galleys and Barbary xebecs are brought in triumph to the
port, but the corsair ships of a people called Christian.

I have crossed this evening to the Pratique Office to learn
more of the character of the aforesaid Greek. And what does

GREEK PIRACIES. 165

she prove ? Nothing less than one of Miauli's own squadron,
and late an associate with that very fleet, for whose elTorts and
achievements the sympathies and admiration of the world have
been so strongly solicited. Instead of hauling up at the close
of the late campaign and remaining snug in winter quarters, she
put forth on a new scent. Her object was plunder ; and ' Tros
Tyriusve,' — Turk or Christian — it made no odds to her. Her
first capture was a French ship from Marseilles, and next a Ge-
noese brig. Suspicion of the pirate having been excited, a
British frigate was sent in quest ; and on securing the prize,
property was found on board to the amount of six thousand
dollars, proving to have belonged to the two vessels just mentioned.

I am sorry to say that these doings are considered here, with
too much reason, to be characteristic of the Greeks. A gentle-
man of great intelligence and distinction said to me — ' There is
a specimen of what you are to look for from Greeks. Every
ship of their squadrons should be watched with distrust. And
it will be w^ell, depend upon it, if the frigate which your coun-
trymen have built for them and called the ' Hope,' proves not
in the end a pirate.'

In confirmation of such opinions and even worse, 1 am forced
to add some unpleasant accounts which I received from other
sources since coming to Malta. Within the last few wrecks
several Austrian and Neapolitan merchant ships have been
stopped and overhauled by Greek cruiserS; and not only plun-
dered of specie and other property, but their crews were abused
in a manner not to be named. Two months ago the American

brig S was boarded by them and in part robbed ; and the

abomination alluded to in the case of the European vessels was
perpetrated on every one of the brig's company. The same
outrage is beheved to have recently occurred in the instance of

another American ship. As respects the S , the account was

fully confirmed to me by the master-commandant of the United
States schooner Porpoise, who arrived here on Monday. That
ofiicer agrees with all others with whom I have conversed in Malta,
in pronouncing the general character of the Greeks detestable.

] 66 MALTA.

And these are the men eulogised, I repeat, as patriots, heroes, and
Christians, — for whom the benevolence of the citizens of Eng-
land and the United States has been eloquently invoked, — and in
whose behalf circular addresses for charitable collections have
been sent round to all our congregations, and read from almost
every pulpit in our cities and villages ! — Under the protection of
the Porpoise came the Boston ship Caspian, homeward bound
from Smyrna. She barely touched here, staying about an hour,
but I was happy in availing myself of so direct an opportunity
of communicating with distant friends. Two or three other
Americans have lately come to port, but they are in quarantine,
and none of them will probably outstay it. One of the vessels
is a beautiful brig from Charlestown, Massachusetts, which Has
made her voyage in the remarkably short run of thirtysix days.
Her model and trim are greatly admired.

An English pleasure yacht, arrived in the harbour, is
another object of curiosity. She is owned by a Welch gentle-
man of fortune, the Hon. Mr T — , who has been cruising from
port to port in the Mediterranean the last two years. Hav-
ing come into the possession of his estates and not liking the old
manor house where his ancestors lived, he determined on
erecting a new and splendid one. To meet the cost, he
put his lands out ' to nurse ' till his revenues should sufficiently
accumulate ; and having a passion for maritime adventures, he
built this beautiful yacht, (which only cost him £] 0,000,
equipments and all.) and is living a few years abroad, as he
thinks, very economically. He is well acquainted with nautical
affairs and is generally intelligent. His yacht is schooner-rigged,
and modelled precisely after the Baltimore clippers, having
the same mould of hull, rake of the masts and so forth. A
privateer prize taken in the last war, served as a pattern. I
remarked that the masts were not so long in proportion, and
learned that they had been cut down five feet. Mr T. acknow-
ledged that he knew not how the Baltimoreans could sail their
vessels in safety with such tops as they carry. In one of the
earliest trips of his yacht, a squall was encountered which came

COMMERCE OF THE TORT. 1 67

nigh to capsizing her ; and she had to run in, at great risk, to a
neighbouring cove. The masts were then shortened, and the
vessel is now worked with ease and despatch. The proprietor
boasts of its being the swiftest sailer in the Mediterranean. ^*

The commerce of the island, though materially diminished, is
still considerable. It is the entrepot not only of many British
goods, but of a large amount of the productions of the neigh-
bouring shores. There is a considerable contraband trade with
Sicily and Calabria, chiefly carried on by feluccas ; and the
Maltese are very expert and vigilant in plying it. By these and
other means, Valetta is always in condition to furnish good as-
sorted cargoes.

From twentyfive to thirty American vessels yearly arrive
here direct from the States, besides others who touch at the
port on their way to and from Smyrna, and the Archipelago.
Our ships bring flour, sugar, coffee, indigo, rice, fish and tobacco.
In return they take some of the native produce, — also fruits
and wines of Sicily, — Barbary wool, and Zante currants which
often pass for sultanas. Woodhouse keeps constantly stored
in this place a large quantity of wine, ready for a market. His
magazine is in the old hospital of the knights. It is estimated
that his stock of * Sicily,' at present in Malta, is not less than ten
thousand pipes.

The- main port of La Valetta is truly superb. Commodore
Rodgers pronounces it the finest in the Mediterranean, and per-
haps inferior to none in the world. He remarks that fifty such
ships as the North Carolina could anchor in it at once ; — and
she is no cock-boat. Her burthen is two thousand three hundred
tons. The entrance to the harbour is scarcely forty rods wide ;
but within, it expands to an average breadth of at least seven
hundred yards. It is so protected that the largest ships in the
stormiest weather might ride in it almost without a cable.

The frequent arrivals and departures of vessels give an ani-
mating appearance to the harbour. An English frigate has just
left Vv'ith a convoy for Mitylene and thence to Alexandria. A

] 68 MALTA.

French ship of war has lately taken pratique, and the officers
who have come on shore are very busy in looking up the ' lions. '
Their naval dress is not becoming ; and there is something
wanting in their step and air to give them finish. It is a uni-
versal remark here that ' the English and Americans ' are the
only good looking officers ; and the Maltese have ample oppor-
tunities of drawing comparisons.

It is pleasant to see another of the United States' flags in port.
The Porpoise will leave, however, tomorrow for Mahon. The
North Carolina is still an object of admiration. The intercourse
between the commodore and both the British admiral and the
acting governor of Malta, is conducted with great civility. They
express a wish that the North Carolina should stay to complete
her term of quarantine, that the English authorities, naval and
military, may interchange personal courtesies with the American
officers. If she were released, there would be a crowd of vis-
itors eager to inspect the noble ship. But objections are still
set up by a company of doctors, who undertake to interpret and
apply rigidly the laws of quarantine. The commodore does
not feel particularly obliged to them, and becoming sick of his
duress threatens soon to be off. The grand concerts of the
marine band are kept up on board, morning and evening ; and
they fully vie with the proudest strains which echo back from the
bastions and parades on shore.

I have visited by invitation the Revenge. The officer in com-
mand while in port, to whose politeness I am indebted for the
opportunity, showed me the ship in detail, and a truly fine exhi-
bition it was. The Revenge is up to her pretensions, and is a
powerful two-decker. The tars are a stout set of fellows ;
their faces looked cheery, and I have no doubt they have hearts
of oak. TJiey were piped to mess while I was aboard, and I
w^as glad to see them devouring in good humour their salt junks
and quaffing their grog. ^^ There was perfect neatness and
order in all the arrangements of the ship. A lunch was after-
wards served in the officers' room, and we spent a pleasant half
hour at the festive board.

BRITISH NAVY. 1 69

British naval officers are wide awake to the condition of our
military marine. Candid men confess that they entered on the
last struggle with America with quite too overweening notions of
superiority. They had beaten every other people, and why
not the Yankees ? Besides, their thousand ships, they say,
looked better on the Admiralty roll than they all proved in
service. Many of them were old ; the system of discipline
had become lax through a confidence of invincibility, and
changes were requisite to bring the navy back to a sound and
healthy condition. The guns of the frigate Constitution, which
in twenty minutes riddled to a honeycomb the ship of Dacres,
were the first sounds to startle their dreams of security ; but it
required a few more rolls of Yankee thunder to dispel their re-
maining illusions. Since the war, they have been careful to
improve by those lessons. They have overhauled their naval
regime, rubbed up their tactics, built stronger ships, and they
think themselves in better condition to cope with maritime
powers than ever. This is well ; for Americans, they may be
assured, if silent, have not been sleeping all the while. If their
navy was good in 1812, it is reasonable to suppose that it is
now somewhat better. The 'bone and gristle ' of youth has
hardened into manhood ; and with a stouter heart and stronger
arm, the head is nowise weaker.

It is sufficiently encouraging to Americans that the explana-
tions of the last war are all on the side of the English; that
the latter have been quietly acting on the maxim, ' ab hoste do-
ceri ;' and that the French government, the power of Con-
tinental Europe most ambitious of a marine, has remodelled
its old naval system so as to bring it into closest conformity with
that of the United States. When Commodore Rodgers was at
Toulon, the ship docks and arsenals of that great station were
submitted to his minutest inspection, — with a liberality very
different from what prevails at Portsmouth and Plymouth to-
wards foreigners. Information was given him without reserve,
and his suggestions were received with the weight of respect and
22

1 70 MALTA.

consideration which they claimed. His opinion is, that France
is already a great naval power, — never so capable on the
ocean as at present, — that fleet with fleet she is able to match
the strongest which England can oppose to her ; and that in an-
other rupture between the two powers, as England has by far the
most numerous points to cover, the chances of maritime suc-
cess in a general view are nearly at least, if not quite, on the side
of the French marine.

The English complain of our practice in rating. — ' What,'
said the officer in command, as we were walking the quarter
deck of the Revenge, his eye then resting on the enormous bulk
of the North Carolina, — 'what do you call that flag-ship ? '

' A seventy four, ' said I.

' Seventyfour, indeed ! She is pierced for a hundred guns
and upwards. Ninetyeight I see mounted. Here is a ship
rated seventyfour, and she carries that armament and no more.'

' Be it so,' was the reply. ' Names are not things. Every
nation has its fancies. Your own government set us the exam-
ple we pursue. If it be one better in the breach than in the
observance, it is only till lately that you yourselves have found
it out. The guns of our ships can be counted. Besides, the
rates of our line-of-battle ships are partly determined by some
peculiarities in the phraseology of an Act of Congress under
which they have been builtj and it is more convenient to retain
them.'

' But the rates,' said the officer, ' are not the only matter of
objection. While the North Carolina, nominally of two decks,
is really a three decker, her weight of metal is more than pro-
portionable. I know the calibre of her guns ; and,' he added
emphatically, * that ship can throw a heavier broadside than any
first-rate in his Majesty's navy.'

' It is fortunate,' I answered jocularly, * that you chance to
know it. You must take care then to match with her, in case
of a grapple, one of your best ships.'

' We shall manage that,' said he, — and conversation turned
to another topic

CONVICTS. 171

I left the Revenge favourably impressed with all I remarked
on board, and not insensible to the obliging civilities which I had
received.

The only entrance to the city by the Marino, — that is to say
from the Grand Harbour, — is through an avenue which exhibits
the wonderful strength of the surrounding defences. The pass-
age is fifty paces in length, through walls of immense solidity.
There are two other entrances, one from the land side called the
Royal Gate, and another, a postern, opening from the quarantine
basin. These are also strongly guarded. When the gates are
shut at night, Valetta is one vast citadel with bulwarks triple
sealed.

Abraham Tucker, in the character of ' Search,' has some-
where said that it is lucky there is a measure of crime in the world ;
for how else could the king find men enough to recruit his army
and navy ? The observation is brought to my mind by seeing
the good account to which criminals are here applied. The
English have a natural antipathy to dirt ; and they are the only
people that I know^ of in Europe whose cities are distinguished
by neatness. Malta, with all the pauperism abroad in its streets,
displays perfect cleanliness. To effect this, criminals, instead of
being pent up idly in dungeons, are employed as street-sweeps
and scavengers. Some of them drag about hand-carts to which
they are chained, and carry away the rubbish and ordure which
other wretches of the same class are obliged to collect and
scrape up. They perambulate in small companies each under
the guard of a soldier, who has arms loaded. Every morning as
soon as day breaks, their bells are rung through the streets to
give notice to the inhabitants to bring forth their disposeables.
The streets are next attended to, and at the usual hour of
sallying abroad after breakfast, I find the town swept and gar-
nished. The clank of the chains and manacles of the convicts
is not very agreeable ; but the reflection arises that they are
better employed as they are, than in wickedness ; and the subject
comes to this, that it is lamentable that such a thing as crime
there is, and that such beings as criminals do exist.

172

MALTA.

There is another set of objects which can only be looked
upon with unmixed horror, which one is compelled to see as
his eye glances along the coast below Fort Ricasoli. It is the
spectacle of four pirates hung in chains, who were executed
several years ago, and have remained on their gibbets ever since.
They are kept there ' in terrorem,' — as scarecrows ; for the
crew of every vessel is forced to see them on entering the har-
bour. I doubt the policy of this. Unquesdonably it was no
encouraging spectacle to the piratical Greeks brought in today 5
but even for them the warning was too late. And why inflict
on all peaceable and honest people the inevitable sight of what
must be so shocking ? Nothing can be more hideous, especially
when the wind is high, than to behold even from a distance
those carcases, in their tattered coverings, dangling to the breeze.

Passing a day or two since near St Elmo, I saw some heaps
of ruins, and workmen employed in further demolidons". Exam-
ining the ground, I found them excavating among the dungeons
built by the old knights as receptacles for their captives in war.
They were sad looking cells indeed, and would have done
honour to a Turk, -~I mean, to own, not tenant them. The
prison range was very extensive. A part of it is to be retained,,
and kept for a gaol.

In justice to the Knights it should be observed, that they were
not wont to incarcerate even the major part of their prisoners
except at night, and then not all. Only the more desperate
ones were kept in constant confinement. They reserved their
captives either for exchange or ransom, and meanwhile treated
them with general humanity. They were distributed on board
the galleys, or employed in the different magazines and arsenals,
or occupied in the public works about the port and fortifications.
Individuals frequently received them into their families, and not a
few of the Grand Crosses were in the habit of employing them
as grooms and valets. Some were retained as cooks in the
palaces of the different Languages, and were occasionally
admitted in menial capacities into the household and about the
person of the Grand Master.

CONSPIRACY OF SLAVES. 173

But such indulgence and fancied security on the part of the
Knights, had well nigh cost them dear. It was the cause of their
exposure to a greater peril than had ever befallen them after the
famous siege by the Turks. The incidence happened about
the middle of the last century. There were then four thousand
Turkish and Moorish slaves in Malta. The Bashaw of Rhodes,
one of the greatest officers in the Ottoman empire, was himself
a captive in La Valetta. A negro was the wretch who first
started the plot, w^hich had it succeeded, would have eventuated
in the most tragic consequences.

The plan was, that there should be a general rising of all the
slaves on the anniversary of St Peter and St Paul, when the
major part of the inhabitants of La Valetta would be attending
the religious celebration at Citta Vecchia. The Grand Master's
valets were to despatch him first when he should retire to take
his afternoon's sieste ; and the exhibiting his head from a window
of the palace was to be the signal of the general insurrection.
The slaves in the houses of the knights were to massacre their
masters forthwith, while others of the conspirators were to rush
to St Elmo, the Armoury and the city gates, and to secure those
important posts. It was expected, that a Barbary fleet would
appear that day on the coast to cooperate with the insurgents,
and the slaves in all the Maltese galleys were to rise in concert.
The plot had been deeply laid ; the Bashaw was in the secret,
and measures were conducted awhile with a prudence and
secresy that seemed to insure success.

A Persian captive who had been admitted to the conspiracy,
but who in a fortunate moment chanced to quarrel with the ring-
leader, was the agent who divulged it. His statements at first
were not credited, but subsequently, circumstances were devel-
oped which abundantly confirmed them. No time was then
lost in seizing the principal conspirators. They were tried,
condemned, and sixty of them were executed. Advices were
sent to the galleys and different quarters of the island. Mean-
while the slaves were shut up, and kept out of mischief till

174 MALTA.

their numbers were reduced by exchange and redemption ; and
thus a combination was defeated which threatened at first
nothing less than the destruction of the Order. 1 should add
the mention of another circumstance in this scheme of atrocity,
namely, that poison had been distributed to all the cooks in the
Inns of the Languages, that those of the knights who might not
fall by the sword, should perish by another process still more
barbarous.

Feb. 15. — As the weather grows warmer, I begin to find
the advantage of narrow streets. Together with the high houses
on either side, they contribute essentially, by the shade they
afford, to the comfort of a pedestrian in a sultry day ; and the
temperature has in two or three instances already been up to
summer heat.

I have observed also a convenience in the plan adopted in
some of the streets of spacing them off like stairways. Of
course, this is only used in those which would naturally slope.
At first, the practice struck me as clumsy, and seemed like vir-
tually shutting up the streets which were so constructed. But
the steps are found of service in aiding the passage of mules and
donkeys, as they prevent their slipping under the weight of
their heavy burdens. The animals mount the stairs quite as
easily as human bipeds.

In La Valetta, while the accommodations of residence for a
portion of the inhabitants are very ample and convenient, those
of others are proportionably straitened and pinched. I have
said something of this in speaking of the general efl^ect of the
houses, but the topic is deserving of further notice. In form
and mass the buildings are uncommonly stately ; and at night
when the streets are quiet and the population is within doors, a
stranger, passing through Valetta, might take it for a city of an-
tique palaces. The founders of these noble houses studied the
comfort of coolness in their construction, — the walls of drawing,
dining and even common sitting-rooms being often from thirty to
forty feet in height. A tall man in such apartments is in litde

DOMESTIC NOTICES. 175

danger of striking his head against the ceiling. In fact, their
great comparative height and spaciousness give a diminutive
look to the human stature.

For the benefit of the poorer classes forming the multitude,
these huge buildings are often made to accommodate many
small families. As a single room on the ground floor some-
times serves for a litde household, many doors open on the
street, and the light and air are admitted to such apartments
only through those passages. A white cotton curtain is drawn
before the entrances, and when the doors are themselves closed,
the rooms are ventilated by means of litde glasses fixed in the
upper pannels and made to swing back.

It may be said that such abodes must be cheerless. Un-
doubtedly ; but then they are litde used by day. The Maltese
are not domestic bodies. The men are always abroad ; and the
women, if they are not at mass or roving about the streets, will
stand or sit for hours in their doorways, observing the busy
crowds, and ready to salute, or chat whh, a passing acquaint-
ance. If anything of a domesdc nature requires to be done,
as cooking or the like, it is performed abroad. They have no
fire-places in their houses, and the culinary apparatus is a porta-
ble stone stove shaped like a jar, with a grate on the top, which
they set just outside of the foot pavement in the street when
they have occasion to light it. Every morning, about eight,
these litde stoves are brought forth before their houses and with
a few coals or splinters they kindle a small fire, and the prepara-
tions for their frugal breakfasts go on. As they are ranged in
regular file along the line of the curb-stone, they make, together
with the groups around them, an odd appearance.

Owing to the mixed character of the populafion and their
diversified pursuits, meals are taken at very difl^erent hours.
The common people dine, or eat the morsel which serves them
instead, at eleven or half past eleven o'clock. Ecclesiastics,
some merchants, and respectable private families of plain habits,
take dinner at one. The more fashionable gentry observe in
common the hour of four ; but when invitations are sent out, the

176 MALTA.

time is fixed an hour or two later. This sometimes confuses
the evening arrangements. I have been asked to take tea
in one family at half past five, when I was engaged at another
house to join a dinner party, at six.

All sorts of trades and occupations are conducted in the
streets, — tailoring, coblering, trunk making, basket weaving
and others. A shoemaker at a corner near my residence
has put up a few boards for a stall, and there he works
the livelong day, a pattern of industry. His accommodations
are so contracted that, in drawing a stitch, he could not possibly
have space enough without borrowing room from the street. At
another corner, by the square of St John, a barber has set up
business. But if he has the sign of a shop, he has no shop to
his sign. He works manfully in the open air, and a merry fel-
low he is. With a chair, the requisite tools, and a small looking-
glass stuck against the street wall, he is as independent as any
knight of the basin. I have frequently in passing admired his
dexterity in plying the razor, and enjoyed his good humour ;
and have sometimes laughed at seeing a full-bearded Maltese
submitting to the operation, braced in the old roundabout, with
an attitude so prim and so grave, — lathered to his eyes, and his
chin bolstered on a rag of a towel, — exhibiting, to be sure, in
such a place and with all the hubbub about him, a pretty droll
figure. When the barber is out of duty, he stands and takes note
of the passengers, and if he sees, as he often may, an unlucky
wight with a beard mal-a-propos, — perhaps a week's growth,
— he kindly intimates it, and invites the hermit if his word should
be doubted to survey his chin in the glass. He is then sure of a
fee for ' mowing.' Sometimes he cracks his jokes upon a Turk
or a Moor, but then his humour does not seem to be equally
relished.

I forgot to say in my notes on Gibraltar that the old Spanish
practice of denoting a barber's occupation by a basin paraded
at the door, is still retained in that place. One of my first
wants was a barber, and no sooner was I fixed in my quarters
than the personage was called. He entered with a visage as

A BARBER — BEGGARS. 177

solemn as his predecessors' in the da)^s of Cervantes, — bearing
a huge brass basin in one hand, and a razor case in the other.
The basin, it appeared, was to take the place of a soap box ; as
the lather was made in it and then, instead of being applied to the
face with a brush, it was rubbed on manually. The rim of the
bowl was made to slope in on one side, to fit it to the neck. I
thought the preliminaries would never have ended, but these
once done, the operation proceeded with celerity. This detail
may not be over and above entertaining ; but perhaps a know-
ledge of the Spanish ' quo modo ' may furnish a useful hint to
those who complain of dull razors, to take care that they first
smooth the way before trying their edge. On the whole it
could be wished, that some labour-saving machine might be
invented to relieve us from this most grievous ill to which
flesh is heir. The inventor of such a facility, besides a patent,
would deserve a statue of bronze.

But I forget that I am in Malta, — no, I cannot forget it, for
Hook out of my window and there I behold a wretched family
group, a mother and several children all in tatters, — nay, with
scarce tatters enough to cover their nakedness, — stretched on
the side pavement by yonder wall. The mother, — I have
frequently dropped a carlin into her hands, and that heart must
be of stone that would not have done it, — looks the image
of famine and despair. Why talk of petty inconveniences and
magnify them into troubles, when there is perfect misery ? Her
home is that spot which she occupies. Brighter days she may
have seen, but they are days which have gone never to return.
For her children, she can hope no better lot. One is a babe
lying on her withered arms, and another a feeble child, with
only a thin cotton wrapper about it, asleep on the cold, hard
pavement ! And this is but one of the many pictures of distress
which meet me in Malta. I like no better perhaps than Adam,
Smith, those whining and melancholy moralists of whom he
speaks, who with a mawkish sensibility are perpetually crying
out, ' Ah, little think the gay, licentious crowd,' and who would
mar the comfort of the deservedly prosperous, by telling them
23

178 MALTA.

of the wretches in pining distress, needing the very crumbs
which fall from their tables. But here is beggary, — haggard
beggary, — which meets the eye, the ear, the aching sympathy at
every turn ; and shall I expunge the record from my page ? —
But how shall the misery be relieved ? Alas, I know not. Indi-
vidual benevolence cannot cure it. Howard, if he were to walk
the streets of Malta, would find the objects of his charity too nu-
merous to admit of their becoming all pensioners on his bounty.

It is some comfort, however, that the bestowment of even a
small gratuity may do some good, at least in prolonging exist-
ence. I have mentioned a coin current here, called a grain.
It is a small bit of copper stamped with Arabic characters, and
in value not quite equal to half an English farthing. ^^ As the
minimum coin in most other countries is five times the value of
this, — a Federal cent, British ha'penny, French sous and Ro-
man bioch being about the same thing, — I doubted at first
whether a grain strictly could be of any worth. ' What can it
buy ?' said I to a friend the other day. ' Buy !' he replied,
* why it can buy a small bunch of onions ; it can buy a mess of
salad ; it can buy an anchovy ; and thus for five of these little
bits a meal may be purchased, enough at least to satisfy the
wants of a temperate Maltese. As for the matter of thirst, he
may slake it gratis at any of the public fountains or tanks.'

The shifts which the Mahese resort to for the means of sub-
sistence, cannot be better perhaps illustrated than in the case of a
poor musician who passes daily under my windows. He has
made a bagpipe of the strangest form and materials, but for all
the purposes of sound, it is as good an instrument of the sort as
I ever heard. The bag is the complete skin of a large dog, ex-
hibiting — besides the body — the appliances of head, legs and
tail to boot. A bullock's horn is fixed to the mouth, and punched
with the requisite number of holes for playing. The big end is
outwards and the horn closed at that part. A small pipe is
inserted into one of the forepaws, and with this the performer fills
the machine. He carries the thing under the left arm, belly up,
and so carefully has the shape of the animal been preserved

AN ANECDOTE. 179

that it looks for all the world like a live dog, or a wild mountain
cat, squeaking in new and strange sounds. The oddity of the
contrivance and the skill of the musician are sure to attract at-
tention, and before the fellow has gone the length of a street,
his drone and his twang seldom fail of being stopped by the toss
of a few coppers which he hastes to pick up.

The Maltese are certainly a grateful people. The smallest
gratuity is thankfully received and sure of being remembered.
A beggar thus noticed will take off his cap whenever his bene-
factor passes, and ejaculate a blessing upon his head. I have
known them to cross the street for the sake of merely bowing
in acknowledgment of some former favours, and then moving
on without asking for more. In both these respects, their grati-
tude and modesty, they differ greatly from the beggars whom
I have met with in other countries. In London and Dublin the
cry is eternally, give, give ; and because you have bestowed to-
day, the mendicant expects that you will do a like service
tomorrow, — else you are liable to be insuked.

The week of my arrival in Malta, returning one day to my
lodgings I found a young man in the passage awaiting my re-
turn, and the servant informed me that he had been stationed
there a full hour. He was dressed in a patched, threadbare
suit of black. His features, which were pallid and wan, had an
interesting and touching expression ; and despite of the poverty
of his attire and eveiy disadvantageous circumstance, there was
something prepossessing at first sight in his air and address. In
an humble manner but with nothing of servility and cringe, he said
he presented himself as an object of charity and begged to state
his case. I took him into my room and he told the story of his
wants. The substance of it was, that he had a sick mother and
two young sisters dependent on him for support, that he was
utterly destitute of money and employment, that with the means
of being useful he could find no situation in which to earn a bare
subsistence, that he had tried and tried in vain, and was ready
to sink in despair. I found on further inquiry that he was qual-
ified to act as clerk in a mercantile establishment, having been

J so MALTA,

partly bred in an Italian compting house. His penmanship and
knowledge of figures were good, and besides the native Maltese
and English (which he spoke fluently,) he was conversant with
French and Italian. He gave me satisfactory references,
and Vicary who was called in, confirmed his account, so far at
least as a partial knowledge of his character and condition could
bear him out.

I told the poor youth that as for helping him to a situation of
usefulness in a place where I was myself a stranger was out of
the question ; that as for aiding him with alms I could do but
little, and that in bestowing upon him that litde, while there
were such multitudes of poor supplicating for a pittance at every
corner, he must expect no more from me. I then gave him a
crown and he departed with lively gratitude depicted on his
countenance, and with assurances of thankful remembrance of
the kindness, small as it was, which he had received.

I saw no more of him till a day or two since, when walking
along Strada Reale a person was observed breaking eagerly
through the crowd on the opposite foot-pavement, and who
darted across the street a little in advance of me. On reach-
ing the side walk he stepped two or three paces ahead and
then siiddenlyturned, took off his hat and made a profound bow,
with the usual saiutafions of the morning. I did not till then re-
cognise in the figure the young man I had so triflingly befriended,
in the manner already related. Without further pausing, he
instantly stepped into the groups which were behind, and on my
turning to look for him he was gone.

I could mention other characteristic incidents, but I forbear.
I repeat, that I have known something of beggars elsewhere,
for I have seen them in many cities. But if I have come to
Malta to know what poverty truly is, I have also learned here that
gratitude can reside in the bosom of the humblest mendicant.

CHAPTER VII

MALTA,

Commodore Rodgers. — Condition of the North Carolina. — Sentiments in Malta.

— Sir H. Neale's Reply to Mr Shaler. — Policy towards the Barbary Powers.

— Departure of the (Commodore. — St John's Cathedral. — Relic of the
Saint. — Ceremonies in the Days of the Knights. — Tomb of La Valette. —
Churches; Greek, Catholic and Protestant. — Malta, Uhe Eye of the Medi-
terranean.'— Government Library. — Missionary Presses ; LabourS; Difficul-
ties, Prospects. — St Paul's Bay. — Vipers. — Citta Vecchia. — Singular
Grotto. — Extraordinary Catacombs. — Distribution of the Maltese Popula-
tion.— Project of Mulberry Plantations. — Geology of the Island. — Ancient
Inundation. — Culture of the Fig. — Caprification, — Treading the Wine
Press.

La Valetta ; Feb, 16. — Understanding it was the inten-
tion of Commodore Rodgers to set sail tomorrow, and no longer
submit to the rigors of a quarantine the reasons of which could
not approve themselves to his mind, I crossed to the Barrier, to
present him my salutations on leavetaking. I had the pleasure
of meeting another of our brave officers. Captain Perry, who
has the immediate command of the flag ship. ^"^

The interview took place in the private office of the Parla-
torio, and as there were no eavesdroppers to catch up and whis-
per the conversation in the ears of ' the Philistines,' the topics
which arose were various and were discussed with freedom.
Malta, its condition and government — England, its cabinet and
policy — France and Russia — Turkey and the Grand Seignor

— Greece, its struggle and prospects — Spain and Minorca —
Barbary and Shaler's Sketches — Cruise in the Archipelago

— Troy and the Scamander, — these were among the subjects
on which remarks were elicited.

182 MALTA.

As it is not my province to record a conversation which oc-
curred under such circumstances, I shall only advert to one
topic which could not be overlooked, namely, the quarantining
of the North Carolina. And I refer to it for the sake of saying
that I should be doing injustice to Commodore Rodgers and
such of his officers with whom I have conversed, were I to inti-
mate the opinion as theirs, that up to the last there had been
wanting any demonstrations of respect and courtesy towards
themselves personally, which might naturally be expected from
the British admiral and military commandant at Malta. But
having said this, I am not conscious of overstepping the limits of
discretion, certainly not of truth, when I add that they regarded,
(wherever the fault lay,) the indefinite detention of the North
Carolina in close quarantine as unreasonable and illiberal. From
the time when the sick were removed to the Lazaretto, the
remainder of the officers and crew, constituting the great body
of the entire complement, enjoyed perfect health. The
invalids, with the exception of the four or five who died of
small pox, became speedily convalescent ; yet they were not
taken on board, that there might be no plausible objections from
that quarter against the ship's receiving pratique. Still the opin-
ion of the Faculty on shore opposed the concession of this
measure, and the British naval and military chiefs affected to
lament that decision and their want of power to annul it.

I state it then on other responsibility, but from evidence which
may be relied on, that the English authorities in Malta have not
wished to allow pratique to the United States' flag-ship. They
have been glad of pretexts to evade that grant ; they did not
relish her appearance at first in the waters of La Valetta, and
are pleased that the order has now gone forth from her com-
mander that her anchor be weighed on the morrow. That state-
ly ship which has gleamed like a meteor upon their eyes, can
be no welcome spectacle. The proud strain of* Hail Colum-
bia ' is no music to their ears ; neither can they discern any
beauty in the ' stars and stripes ' floating above a ship of such
formidable armament.

THE NORTH CAROLENA. 183

Nor by this would I be understood as recalling what has been
said on a former page that a general desire prevails in Malta that
the North Carolina should be liberated from quarantine. The
mass of the inhabitants earnestly wish it. They gaze on the
noble ship with undiminished interest, and all indeed, though
with different motives, scrutinize it as they would the apparition
of Leviathan.

That America is not without a voice in Malta may be inferred
from an anecdote which I give as I received it. The incident
took place a few days before my arrival, but it was reported to
me by an ear witness whose character is an ample voucher.

When the President's Message was received here, it produced
a stir similar to that which it occasioned at Gibraltar. The talk
was at once of war ; the possible was interpreted into the prob-
able, and the knowing ones said that war it would be. A Mal-
tese gentleman, distinguished for independence of sentiment,
and whose acquaintance I have lately had the pleasure of form-
ing, was entertaining a party at dinner. Of the guests were
several British naval officers, and in the course of conversation
the popular theme of war with the United States was brought
up. It happened that the North Carolina arrived the day pre-
ceding, and of course was then lying under the guns of the
numerous batteries ^ which surround and defend the harbour.
' Ah, that Yankee,' said an officer, ' that ship, — and a grand
one she is, — is ours.' ' Yes,' cried another, ' she cannot escape
us. If war there is, as war there will be, we have her. We
will rig her flags after a different pattern.' ' No, gentlemen,'
said the host, ' that ship is not yours, and she never will be
yours even in the event you anticipate. I know the spirit of Com-
modore Rodgers, and of his officers and crew ; and you ought to
know it full well ere you hazard what you say. If there be war,
escape, I grant, is impossible from under the guns of these for-
tresses and the shipping in the waters. But neither officers nor
men would surrender their charge. They would fight to the
last gasp and upon the last plank ; and sooner than the North

184 MALTA.

Carolina should fall into British hands, the commodore would
blow up his ship.'

The brave defenders of my country's flag need not be re-
minded that such are the sentiments entertained of them, more-
over, by a large class of foreigners. It remains for them to
make good in another struggle, — if it must come, but which
may God avert, — their reputation for valour. It is not doubted
that they will then justify the confidence of the Republic. ^^

A day or two since, I obtained a copy of Sir Harry Neale's
Reply to the strictures on the admiral's conduct before Algiers
contained in Mr Shaler's Sketches of that Regency. I was
curious to know how far the charges could be rebutted and dis-
proved. The Reply, though printed, has not been published.
Five hundred copies were struck off for gratuitous distribution
among the admiral's friends, one of whom made over his pam-
phlet to me. It is a meagre thing of only thirty pages, printed
in large, loose type, each page arranged with parallel columns, —
one containing extracts from Mr Shaler's work, the other a run-
ning commentary by the respondent. The title should be Con-
tradiction, and not ' Reply,' for it offers no disproof of the most
material statements of the American consul. It is true, it pre-
sents some measures, which Mr Shaler misunderstood in a new
light, and so far may vindicate the admiral personally, but it still
leaves the shuffling policy and vacillating instructions of the
British Cabinet, under which he acted, in the same strange and
awkward predicament as before. The blame is only shifted
and thrown a little farther back. That the British admiral had
the power of battering Algiers in 1824, as successfully as it was
done by Lord Exmouth eight years before, is not to be doubted ;
for if Algiers was stronger, so the force which he could apply was
proportionably adequate. But it did not suit the policy of Eng-
land to root out, in either case, that nest of pirates. She wished,
undoubtedly, to overawe Algiers and obtain respect for herself as
the most formidable of maritime nations ; but if this could be effect-
ed by negotiation or fanfaronade, the course was deemed prefera-
ble, not from motives of humanity, but to keep up apiratical power

SIR H. NEALE— MR SHALER. 185

whose corsairs, by plundering the commerce of smaller states,
might leave the carrying trade of the Mediterranean as much as
possible in the hands of the English. This was the secret cause
\vhy the government did not follow up the brilliant coup de main
of Exmouth in 1816, by utterly and forever annihilating the
power of the Dey ; and not a doubt exists that the present ad-
miral, though a gallant and efficient officer, was hampered by
his instructions so far as to oblige him to act a part before Al-
giers which his soul must have scorned, and which some would
misinterpret into pusillanimity.

I confess that the strictures of Mr Shaler, considering his offi-
cial station, appear to have been somewhat imprudent, and devoid
of that bienseance which might be looked for from such a quarter.
But bating this, — that his book possesses great merit, and that he
proved himself vigilant, talented and intrepid in the office he filled
at the Regency of Algiers, cannot be denied. Yet it is amusing
to mark the force of prejudice, stimulated by wounded pride, in
the closing paragraph of the admiral's Reply. ' I sincerely
regret,' says he, ' that Mr Shaler has compelled me to part with
my opinion of him as a plain, well meaning man. His Journal
can have few readers who will not allow that, slender as is the
ability which its composition displays, he has been equally in-
cautious of giving currency to false information, careless of in-
vestigating truth, and profuse in his own praise !'

However lamentable Mr Shaler may regard the loss of Sir
Harry's good opinion, he may console himself with the reflection
of having written the best work on Algiers which has appeared
since the days of Shaw ; and that the favourable estimate which
the American public have formed of it, has been borne out by
the voice of all unprejudiced, intelligent foreigners. ^^

As respects the sinister policy of England in tolerating so
long, nay, and indirectly upholding the predatory hordes of Bar-
bary, it can be contemplated at this day by Americans as no
cause of regret in its results to them, nationally considered. In
self-defence, they were obliged to build and equip naval arma-
ments, the foundation of that marine which covered itself with
24

186 MALTA.

glory in the second war with Britain. The Mediterranean was
the field of some of its earliest feats of prowess. It was here
that the strength of the infant Hercules was tried, and here it
has continued to be nursed. The Eagle of the Republic, (to
vary the metaphor,) was young, — it was scarce twenty years
old, — when it spread its vigorous wing over the gallant Preble
in his positions before Tangiers and Tripoli. Nor does history
record a more splendid deed of valour than that of Decatur
under the walls of the latter, in 1804. As for Preble, his merit
was s^ conspicuous in the eyes of Europe, that the Pope
(whose opinion must be deemed canonical,) declared, that ' he
did more towards humbling these barbarians than all the states
of Europe had then ever done.' ^^

When peace^ with England, in 1815, allowed the United
States to turn their attention to another and the strongest of those
ferocious powers, — a power which, in violation of treaties and
every principle of magnanimity as well as justice, had been
warring, while the greater struggle was pending, against the com-
merce of our people, — no time was lost in instituting summary
measures of redress. A squadron was detached which, ' as the
wing of the whirlwind swift,' sped to Algiers. It entered the
harbour bearing the trophies of the Barbarian admiral's flag-
ship, which it had captured in its passage. Peace w^as dictated
on the terms of indemnity for past spoliations, manumission of
captives, including a Neapolitan crew then held in bondage, —
final relinquishment of all claims for future tribute, and the land-
ing a consul under the guns of the squadron, who has remained
not only unmolested but distinguished by the peculiar deference
of the Dey. It cannot be doubted that this decisive measure
shamed the British ministry into the hostile attitude followed up
by the bold stroke of Exmouth on Algiers, in the following year ;
but they then looked on with complacency as they saw the de-
fences of the Regency rising up with augmented strength, in the
vain hope that Algiers, renewed like a Phenix, would one day
cope with successfully, and humble, if not destroy, the Trans-
Atlantic marine.

ST JOHN'S CATHEDRAL. 187

Feb. 17. — The North Carolina sailed today. At the hour of
nine, when the colours of the ship were lifted with usual honours,
her anchor was weighed, her canvas spread, and with a fair
breeze she wafted from the harbour. Her topsails were backed
in the offing while her barges put out to take the invalids from
the Lazaretto ; but these being received on board, every sail was
again stretched ; and, — like the flight of the proud bird whose
emblem she carried, — she bore away on strong pinion, and soon
faded on the distant blue main.

1 turn to the reminiscence of a fallen line of heroes, — from
the people of today, to a people who are past; — and let us enter
a structure which entombs their ashes, and commemorates alike
their piety and their renown.

St John's is the Westminster Abbey of Malta. Its venerable
towers are coeval with the walls of La Valetta. The temple
was formerly enriched by the princely offerings of the sovereigns
and grand priors of the Order, which were statedly made every
period of five years; and the floor where successive generations
of heroes have knelt in worship, now covers the sepulchres
where they sleep and will rest until the heavens be no more.
' The paths of glory lead but to the grave.'

Often as I have visited this church, (for its entrance is never
closed), and at times I have found my steps tending insensibly
thither, — yes, often as I have visited it, the threshold is
crossed with undiminished veneration, and the emotions
awakened in my bosom are always deep and solemn.

The interior arrangements of the church remain substantially
the same as in the days of the Order. A separate chapel was
originally assigned to every Language. These form the two
aisles which line a spacious nave. Their numerous carved or-
naments, gilded with sequin gold, attest the munificence of the
Grand Master Cotoner. The church is rich in pictures, par-
ticularly frescos, painted by the Calabrian artist, Matthias Preti.
Every compartment of the roof between the pillars of the re-
spective chapels is thus ornamented ; the subjects representing
the different events in the life of St John.

188 MALTA.

The principal altar is placed at a distance from all the others
in the middle of the choir ; at the further end of which, is a
group in marble upon a raised basis, representing our Saviour
baptised by St John.

There is a chapel dedicated to the Virgin, which, before the
capitulation of Malta to the French, contained two ex votos of
immense value, and was lighted by a golden lamp fastened to
the roof by a long chain of the same metal. There were also
many different articles in the treasury of the church, not only
extremely valuable, but of great antiquity and rare workmanship.
None of these, however, were spared by the French, who, from
the first of their arrival, are said to have begun to carry away
during the night everything made of gold and silver, in order to
convert the plunder into ingots.

The spoils of St John's availed them no better than the riches
of the Kremlin. They were put on board the L'Orient, which
was afterwards blown up in the memorable batde of the Nile.

A profanation, the most grievous in the eyes of the Maltese,
was committed by the French in stripping a venerable relic —
no less than the hand of St John — of all its costly ornaments
of gems and gold. The hand itself was detained awhile by the
captors, but as it did not possess the same value in their eyes as
it held in the estiinadon of the Knights Hospitallers, it was re-
stored in a most forlorn condition, in consideration of the tears
and entreaties of Hompesch, the last grand master. The story
of the curious relic is this :

The Emperor J\istinian, finding the hand deposited in a church
at Antioch, caused it fo be removed to Constantinople, and
placed it in a church which he built there at great expense. After
the fall of Constantinople, the relic was religiously preserved by
the Sultan Mahomet II., and transmitted to his successors.
When Bajazet mounted the throne, trembling for his newly-
acquired possessions, he sought the friendship of D'Aubusson,
then grand master of Rhodes, who had become famous in the
preceding reign by a signal victory obtained over the infidels.
To insure his esteem, the Sultan naturally thought that a more

ANCIENT SOLEMNITIES. 189

acceptable present could not be tendered than the hand of the
Saint from whom the Order was named j particularly, as the
relic had been refused to the magnificent overtures of several
Christian princes. D'Aubusson received the gift with becoming
gratitude. It was carried by his successors from Rhodes, and
is still deposited in a little coffer within an oratory of the church
of St John.

If the French plundered St John's of its portable treasures,
they could not, as already intimated, dismantle its walls of its
more striking embellishments, and the effect they produce in
combination with the associations of the place, is certainly very
grand. The pavement of the church is not its least ornament*
It is a species of Mosaic, inlaid with sepulchral marbles of dif-
ferent colours. The armorial emblems of the warriors who now
rest below, are exhibited by means of these variegated stones.
Some of the monumental tablets were encrusted with jasper and
agate, and all of them have a rich and costly look.

Imagination goes back, and recalls the descriptions which
have been given of the pompous ceremonies observed in this
church, in the days of its glory. On great religious celebrations,
the Grand Master was seated under a gorgeous canopy in a
sanctuary next the Evangelist ; the grand crosses were placed
on forms below and near the communion table. The knights,
and others attached to the service of the Order, were stationed
along the sides of the church; and the central area was kept open,
adding inexpressibly to the effect of the entire arrangement.
The prior of St John's was seen ministering at such times in
splendid episcopal robes, and while occupied at the altar, an
official was employed in refreshing him by means of a magnifi-
cent feathered fan, the handle of which was of burnished gold.

The most august religious service was that annually observed
at the era of raising the great siege of Malta. The victorious
standard was then carried with profound respect to the foot of
the altar. It was borne by a knight, clad in a habit and helmet
of the form of those worn in the crusades of old. On his left
hand marched a page, holding the precious sword and poignard

190

MALTA.

presented by Philip II. of Spain to La Valette, as a tribute to
his sublime heroism ; and on the right moved the marshal, ac-
companied by the whole Language of Auvergne, to whose
knights the grand standard was particularly confided. This
ceremony was announced by warlike music, and a discharge
of artillery from all the different forts.

But those days of solemn commemoration are past. The
chivalry of St John's lies buried beneath this hallowed fane. Its
walls no longer echo to their choral anthems in honour of the
God of Victories. ' Ichabod ' — the glory departed, — is written
on every stone of the consecrated pavement.

I went dovvn to their tombs. In a part of the vaults, I entered
a dim chamber where the remains are deposited of six or eight
of their most renowned grand masters. As I ranged along the
crypts I sought particularly the sepulchre of John La Valette.
He reposes in a niche within a recess of the wall, his coffin
being enclosed in a marble soros.

I was alone, — and what a spot for solemn reflection!
Around, slept others not so famed indeed as that victor chief,
but who, while living, had sent their names through Christendom,
and the dread of those names throughout the territories visited
by the pale, the sickly, the deathly beams of the crescent. How
still their repose — hushed as the foot of night ! Their weapons
of war are perished, or preserved to be gazed upon with vacant
wonder by men, themselves shadows, and hastening to the same
fatal valley.

And this is the end of man, — his pride, and his glory. The
very edifices those heroic hands assisted to uprear, — * the
cloud-capt towers, the gorgeous palaces, the solemn temples,'
— structures w4iich haply they deemed were to outstand the tide
of ages, and be monuments of their fame till time should expire
with the world, — these too are falling back to dust. What
lessons do they read of the littleness of man in all his pomp,
and the ephemeral duration of human agencies ! These gallant
spirits, once peerless in ' battle and trial of the sword,' — what

M^ifMN !L.a V:\hKr-\

GREEK RITES. 191

avails their fame, deathless though it be ? The Christian asks?
Have they obtained the palm as 'good soldiers' of the Cross •

Sons of the morning ! whither are ye gone ?
Where have ye hid your many-spangled heads,
And the majestic menace of your eyes

Felt from afar ?

And again ;

Tell us, ye dead ; will none of you in pity

To those you left behind disclose the secret ?

Oh that some courteous ghost would blab it out.

What 'tis you are and we must shortly be !

* * * * * Do the strict laws

Of your Society forbid your speaking

Upon a point so nice ? I'll ask no more :

Sullen like lamps in sepulchres, your shine

Enlightens but yourselves. Well — 'tis no matter ;

A very little time will clear up all.

And make us learn'd as ye are, and as close. 41

Feh. 1 8. — This being Sunday, I looked into several churches.
I went with no captious spirit ; for piety, where observed, I can
respect under whatever form or name ; and my devotions I can
offer as fervently in a Catholic, as in a Protestant temple.

These remarks are premised to screen from uncharitableness
a part of the observations which follow, founded upon matters
which forced themselves on my attention. In the words of that
Book which every sect professes to revere, • — ' I cannot but
speak the things which I have seen and heard.'

I went first, early in the morning, to the Greek Church.
The members of that communion refuse fellowship with Cath-
olics, whom they scruple not to consider as idolaters ; for,
whereas, the Catholics have images in their churches and set
them up at the corners of streets and pray to them, the Greek
schismatics abjure such objects, and confine their veneration to
pictures. I was desirous of seeing and comparing differences
for myself.

In the Greek Church images there were none, but pictures
there were some, and crosses in sufficiency, and incense in
clouds. Literally, the smoke of the incense was seen issuing

192 MALTA.

from the doors, and the smell of it I perceived several yards
from the entrance. There were but few devotees present.
Some Greeks, distinguished by full mustachios and flowing beards,
knelt upon the pavement. I staid some time, but all that the
priest did the while was a mere dumb show, a sort of devout
pantomime. He conmienced with crossing himself and kneel-
ing several times at the altar. He then came and bowed before
the people, whispering something, but nothing audible reached
my ear. After an interval, he withdrew a crimson cloth from a
recess, constructed like the ark in synagogues, and an illuminated
book was displayed. Before this he bowed and knelt, and
knelt and bowed ; then took from a page in waiting a censer,
into which he put fresh frankincense, and threw the vase from
side to side, pausing occasionally to perfume with it the volume.
And this was all. The people continued meanwhile in a kneel-
ing posture, and I hope had grace in their souls. Certainly it
was not in the service. I endured the mummery as long as I
could, and softly withdrew.

A thought occurs to me : — Prythee, Greek, explain the dif-
ference between worshipping statues and the veneration thou
ofFerest to pictures ? The same Law which says, ' Thou shalt not
make any graven image,'' adds, ' nor any likeness of anything
in Heaven above, or on the earth beneath.'

From the Greek I went to a Catholic Church, the Dominican.
There were about two hundred women, young and old, kneeling
on the area, all clad in the invariable black dress of skirt and scarf,
looking devotion. But neither the attitude, place, nor hour pre-
vented the most from turning their heads, and from beneath their
oveYshadowm^ faldeitas eyeing each in-comer. Of males, there
were from twenty to thirty.

A priest was standing at the altar, and like his Samaritan
neighbour across the way, knelt repeatedly before it. Occasion-
ally he made a genuflexion before an image of the Saviour, or
kissed a crucifix which he held, or signed himself with the cross
on the breast and forehead, or chanted something with a
nasal drawl from a missal before him. And this too was all of

,CATHOLIC CONFESSIONAL. 193

Ms services. He was splendidly robed, it is true ; and around
him were tapers burning, and the building itself, a very fine one?
was well calculated to be a House of Prayer. But where was
the worship ? A few of the women were telling their beads, and
if they muttered their prayers, as probably they did, what
meaning, can it be supposed, they attached to the Latin of a
Pater Noster or Ave Maria? ^^

In a part of the church another priest occupied a confession
box. A young woman was whispering in his ear through the
grate. On the other side of the confessional were three other
females kneeling, and waiting for their respective turns at the
box. As I looked at them, I saw in each, despite of their
demure looks, an archness of the eye and a certain turn about
the corners of the mouth, which told pretty plainly the value of
their penitence. I verily believe that the priest himself was
ashamed to be seen playing the farce he was enacting. For in
the first place, he had a look which belied all seriousness, and in
the next, when 1 directed my eyes a second time to the box, I
met his, which he immediately averted, and covering his face
with his mantle, pretended to be listening to the confession of
the fair penitent. But as often as I subsequently stole a glance
in that direction, I found if his ear was open on the one side,
his eye was turned to another, looking at the protestant, not
simply with an expression of curiosity in surveying a foreigner,
but as though he were essaying to read his thoughts on things
around, and already suspected them in relation to the auricular
ceremony. Certainly, if the priest wished to recommend to
respect the office wherein he was engaged, he could not have
taken a less likely course.

And this is the religion — the Greek and Catholic — ofnineteen-
twentieths of the population of Malta. What is its influence out
of church on the people ? A New Englander, were he to land
here today, could he by any means forget that this is the Chris-
tian sabbath, would not be corrected and set right by what he
would witness. He would not even suspect that it is Sunday.
The churches are open, but so they are on every day of the week.
25

194 MALTA.

A few shops are closed, but the doors of a vast many more^are
spread wide, and their windows are stuffed as usual. The
poorer people are going about the streets crying wares, water
and fruit for sale. The market is supplied with fish, flesh and
garden stuffs, and is frequented by purchasers as on other days.
Children are playing abroad. Porters in their daily apparel
wait at the corners of the streets to take burdens, or other com-
missions, which may offer ; and watermen are plying their skiffs
in the harbor and inlets.

A portion of the populace, it is true, are better clad than at
other seasons. Many of the men shave on this day, and if they
have clean shirts they wear them. The females, too, for the
most part, look neater. They are careful to put on clean cotton
hose, and to lace their ankles with plenty of black ribband, so
that when kneeling, that part of their persons may show to best
advantage. For it should be noted, that though their large,
dark mantles are sufficient when they kneel to cover their per-
sons, the foot and ankle, especially of the younger ones, in gen-
eral contrive to play truant, and peep out from under the invi-
dious vesture. — While I am writing, a bagpiper is passing by,
tuning his airs, and followed by a motley crowd of idlers. He
is the same whose ingenuity is recorded in a former paragraph.
This is another specimen of the manner in which Sunday is
observed by the generality in Malta.

But I will leave these matters and, pen in hand, let us step
down to Strada Forni, whither I went at eleven, and just note
what presents itself there.

A ' devout soldier' shows me to an * upper room ' where a few
disciples are gathered together to worship. But how small their
number ! Thirty are all who assemble to ' hear in their own
tongue the wonderful works of God.' Of these, six are of the
soldiery. The looks and demeanour of all bespeak the spirit of
piety. Presently, a door back of a small pulpit opens, and a
man of reverend aspect enters, the melancholy of whose face
evinces a heart acquainted with sorrows and which seems to say,
— Have pity upon me, O my friends, for the hand of God has

PROTESTANT WORSHIP. 195

touched me ! It is my friend Mr T , and my heart aches to

see the inroads which grief is making upon his frame. Recently
bereft of the companion of his pilgrimage, — the tender and
estimable wife of his youth, — he mourns a loss doubly poignant
in a land of strangers. The corruptible lies in yonder ceme-
tery ; but her meek and pure spirit has ascended from the fading
to the abiding, — from the society of earth, to that household in
the heavens, the only family which cannot be divided, the only
connexion which cannot disappoint the warmest expectations.

The pastor bends over the pulpit and silently breathes the
aspirations of his soul. He rises — names a hymn — reads two
lines of a stanza, — pauses — the congregation sing ; again he
reads — again pauses — and the simple, solemn strain is renewed.
At length this office is suspended. The volume of inspiration is
before him. He opens it, and names the sixtieth chapter of
Isaiah. All is hushed, — and the voice of the living God speaks,
by the mouth of his servant, words of comfort to Jerusalem : —
' Arise, shine, for thy light is come and the glory of God is risen
upon thee.' Arrived at the twentieth verse, he suspends the
reading to observe — ' Although this portion of the prophecy
doubtless refers in a primary sense to the ultimate glories of the
church below, yet a deeper and sublimer import it possesses.
It alludes to that blessed period, when the children of God shall
be gathered into the kingdom of perfect beatitude, when they
shall bid an eternal adieu to the changes and perturbations of
earth, and grace shall reign where no sorrow is.'

The chapter concludes. The litde company kneel, and the
preacher in a strain of fervent devotion addresses the Throne of
mercy. He dwells, afFectingly, on the spiritually wretched con-
dition of the inhabitants of this isle and the shores of the adja-
cent continents ; and with a holy importunity intercedes with
God, that he would rebuke the ' machinations of antichrist,' and
give success and efficacy to the labours of his servants in the
dis^mination of truth. A hymn succeeds, the voices of the
little group collectively joining as before in the sacred air to
which it is sung. The scripture to be discoursed upon is then

196 MALTA.

propounded. — A passage from James furnishes the theme, —
' Brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations.
It is first judiciously remarked, that there is no inconsistency
between this charge and that of one of the closing petitions of the
manual of devotion prescribed by the Saviour; that strictly the em-
phatic term means, as may be found both by reference to the orig-
inal and the context, afflictions ; and that Christians should esteem
them blessings when appointed to them for reasons various and
cogent. These are next enumerated and are all enlarged upon,
widi pertinency and force. — Under one of the topics, having
occasion to allude to the trials of those ' elders' of whom the world
was not worthy, and instancing in that of Abraham, in being
called from his native Ur of the Chaldees to wander forth a He-
brew— i. e. a pilgrim — he knew not whither, and who never-
theless obeyed the heavenly summons, and while feeling as a
man yet submitted as a believer, — the preacher impressively
appeals to the experience of all in his little auditory. ' You all
have tasted something of the bitterness of this trial. For you
have all bidden adieu, though perhaps for a season, to home and
kindred and country, and are now in a land of strangers. But
how much keener would be your regrets, if an exile from your
native shores were known to be final and permanent, — if not
so much as a dim, if no hope, as in the case of the ancient pa-
triarch, were left you, — of an ultimate return to the land and
spot, so fondly endeared, of your birth ? '

The homily being finished, a few more verses appositely
chosen, are given to be sung. Another address to the mercy-
seat ensues ; and a benediction, uttered with Christian affection,
closes the edifying services. I return refreshed by the ministra-
tions. This is to be fed, not with ' stones,' but with ' bread.'

Feb, 19. — Malta, though called the Eye of the Mediterra-
nean, certainly sees but little. It is not easy to explain this,
considering the frequency of arrivals from every quarter of tlie
compass, which might furnish the matter, as the initials alone of
the cardinal points, (North, East, West, and South,) are enough

EYE OF THE MEDITERRANEAN. 197

to give US the name^ of News. In America and England there is
abundance of intelligence published, via Malta ; but a precious
little do we have of it here. It seems like coming to a city
and not being able to see it for the number of its houses. For
reports are flying in reasonable supply. We have one, just now,
of the late cession of Minorca to England, and its recall by the
court of Madrid at the urgent remonstrance of France. This
rests on respectable authority ; for England has pecuniary claims
of considerable amount on the Spanish government, and would
be v/ell content, doubtless, to extinguish them by receiving so
valuable a transfer. In default of this, she may turn her eyes to
Cuba; but unfortunately that island can only be obtained at the
expense of a war with the United States in which France would
probably join us. Thus stands this matter.

Another rumour afloat is, that England, France, and Russia
have sent an ultimatum to the Porte in behalf of the Greeks.
The bases of this are said to be, that the Turks shall be obliged
to desist from further hostilities, — that the Greeks shall be nom-
inally subject to them, but are to choose their immediate rulers,
and to enjoy various political immunities, — the guarantees of all
which are to be given by the three allied courts. This rumour
is credited here by intelligent men. ^^

In respect to the belligerent affairs of Greece, most of the ac-
counts which reach Maha are deemed apochryphal. Battles
and triumphs are chiefly fabricated in Germany, and got up to
keep alive the popular feeling in behalf of the Greeks. Most of
the battles were never fought, and of others a mountain has
been created out of a molehill. A notable example of this, I
am able to verify on the authority of a distinguished officer
lately in Greece.

The pews of a brilliant engagement between the Greeks and
Turks, — in which, of course, the victory was assigned to the for-
mer, — after being first served up in the Augsburgh Gazette, and
having travelled the rounds of the European journals, went back
to Greece and excited as much wonder there as it had done
abroad. Four hundred of the enemy were said to have been

198 MALTA.

killed and three hundred made prisoners. Upsilanti was the
general and hero. My informant meeting him about that time,
showed him the official account ; and ' how is this, Prince ? '
was the inquiry. Upsilanti glancing at the date, said with a
smile, — ' Why this is a pretty business. I recollect that affair
very well, — it was a running fusillade — a mere skirmish. Not
more than twenty or thirty were killed, wounded, or captured on
both sides during the whole rencontre ! '

A journal is printed here in weekly numbers called the ' Malta
Government Gazette,' — very showy, but very mum in the way of
news. It publishes nothing but what every one knows before,
and its opinions are shaped scrupulously after those of the
Courier. It is printed in English and Italian, each page being
divided into two columns which are translations and counter-
parts of one another. For beauty of type and execution it is a
very respectable affair ; and if it publishes little news, it exacts
little pay, the price being only three pence a single paper.

In the matter of bookselling, Malta has nothing to boast over
Gibraltar. The poverty of shops in both is deplorable. I have
hunted in vain for even a decent stall. The sight of a good ' book-
store,' like the many along Washington street, would be truly
refreshing. Those convenient litde manuals also, in the shape
of guides and pictures, found in our Atlantic cities, and in almost
every town and village of Great Britain, are unknown in Malta
and Gibrahar. A traveller will have to bring a modicum of
knowledge and a small stock of books with him, together with a
prospectus in his mind of things to be sought out ; and he will
be obliged to brush up his ideas and reminiscences on a pinch,
or he will be put to his trumps in groping his way through Malta.
After all, as M. Angelo, the Caravaggese, on being asked
whence he drew his pictures of heroes pointed to the porters in
the street, and said, There are my originals, — perhaps the
tourist will find his account best in using a pair of good eyes, and
making his reflections in respect to men and things as he passes
along, or as they chance to turn up.

GOVERNMENT LIBRARY. 199

There is a government library rich in olden lore and the lite-
rature of the middle ages, or of what may be called the cinque
cento, and of this Malta may be justly proud. It was founded
by the Bailli de Tencin who himself gave ten thousand volumes
to the infant establishment. Few additions have been made to
it since the days of the knights. The library now numbers
sixty thousand volumes. It was a rule with the Order, that any
knight, dying where he might, should leave his books to go into
this great repository ; and though they were a race not exactly
tam Me CURIO quam Marti, yet from their numerous small con-
tributions the library subsequently rose to its present condition,
and the arrangements made by the existing government for
access ta its stores are liberal and praiseworthy. Respectable
strangers are admitted to it. Separate tables, furnished with
pens ink and paper, are provided for visiters ; and any books
that may be needed for reading or reference are promptly
handed by the obliging and intelligent librarian.

It is pleasant to turn aside from the noise and whirl of the
thronged streets, and to enter such a retreat. The stillness of
night reigns through the spacious hall. It is resorted to by few.
Now and then a priest, or a student from the university, looks
in. An amateur may luxuriate there with less chance of inter-
ruption ; and daily I spend an hour or two in its inviting seclu-
sion, and have been well repaid in rummaging amid its dusty
tomes.

In the library are deposited some valuable remains of great
antiquity found in different parts of the island. One is very
curious and demands a passing notice. It is a Punic monument,
consisting of a base and shaft beautifully wrought in marble,
and supposed to have been intended for a grand candelabrum.
There is a double inscription in Phoenician and Greek, the char-
acters of which are well preserved, but their meaning was a
puzzle to antiquarians till the Abbe Barthelemy hit upon the
solution. A couple of brothers, natives of Tyre, who in the
course of a hazardous voyage had put into the friendly port of
Melita, consecrated this sculptured marble to Hercules, the

200 MALTA.

tutelar divinity of their city. It records their aspiration, * May
he bless and guide us in our uncertain way ! '

Who can read this inscription without emotion ? It was piety
though in the bosom of Paganism, — piety, that was * feeling
after ' that Being and fain would ' find Him,' who is ' not far
from every one of us.' Can we doubt that, although offered to
another Name, it was yet accepted by the common Father of all ?
And that to souls in such ' ignorance ' the Creator benevolently
inclined ? Assuredly it was received ; but thank God, the
Dayspring has arisen upon ourselves ; and the voice should be
reverently heeded which ^now commandeth all men every-
where to reform.' ^*

An experiment, at least Christianly humane, is in operation
by means of the missionary presses established in Malta, to dispel
the cloud of superstition which, after eighteen centuries, still in-
volves so many shores of the Mediterranean. The Palestine
mission under the superintendence of the American Board of
Commissioners, have two patent presses at work in this place.
And by the way, they are acknowledged to be the best which
have been seen in Malta. — The English Independent dissenters
and the English Episcopal church have each a press here also,
supported by the friends of missions under those respective
orders. There is no other convenient place in the Mediterra-
nean where such operations would be permitted, and these are
barely tolerated, not encouraged, by the government of Malta.
I have taken some pains to acquaint myself with these matters,
and to learn the results and prospects of the missionary labours
in so interesting a department.

The American missionary on the island, — who is a sensible
man of undoubted piety, and whose worth I am happy in pub-
lickly acknowledging, ^— has applied himself industriously to his
vocation. It consists in aiding the translation of Tracts, chiefly
into Italian, in concert with an intelligent native Maltese, —
overseeing the printing and subsequent disposal of them, — and
occasionally preaching to a small society of dissenting pro-
testants in connexion with a worthy pastor of the Methodist per-

MISSIONARY PRESSES. 201

suasion. The printing office is in his own house ; the mechan-
ical duties of which have been in charge of another American, but
as he is about returning to the United States, they will devolve

on a Maltese already trained for that purpose. Mr T , the

missionary to whom I have alluded, has resided here five years,
having never joined his brethren on the Palestine station setded
at Beirout. During this period he has printed about seventy
Tracts, averaging a thousand copies each. They are well exe-
cuted, and done up with neat covers, the object being to make
them as attractive in appearance as may be, with a due re-
gard to economy. The cheapness of the work is surprising, as
the general cost, — including translating, paper, ink, printing and
binding, — does not much exceed one mill a page ; or about ten
pages are afforded for a ha'penny. A few of the Tracts are
printed in Romaic. It gave me pleasure to see in the Ameri-
can Repository that invaluable little treatise, Scougal's ' Life of
God in the Soul of Man,' in its Grecian dress, just ready to be
introduced to the natives of the Archipelago.

The Independent missionary press attends chiefly to publica-
tions in modern Greek. This establishment I visited for the
first time today, and was gradfied with the businesslike manner
in which its proceedings are conducted. The Tracts are quite as
neat as the American, and in point of form and appearance they
need not be improved. I have several of these little publica-
tions now lying before me ; and turning them over this evening I
find them instructive religious tales, free from offensive sectarian
peculiarides, and well adapted to recommend the simplicity of

Christian truth. The superintendent, Mr W , of London, is

a clergyman serious without cant, a well-read scholar and a well
bred man. I apprehend it to be no disparagement to annex the
last, for I have yet to learn that pretensions to piety are incon-
sistent with the character of a gentleman. If one of the requi-
sites of such a character be hospitality, I can tesdfy to the claims

both of MrW and my countryman, the pleasure of whose

acquaintance I owe to their early introducdon of themselves^
26

202

MALTA.

and who have proved by other courtesies that they are not
forgetful to entertain strangers. ^^

The Episcopal press is publishing Paley's Evidences in
modern Greek. It prints a little also of Turco and Arabic, but
not much has been done in those lines yet. These presses,
though independent of one another, fraternise in general objects.
The two first from their activity are most worthy of attention.

I have mentioned one motive of the choice of their locality.
Another is the central position of the island. Malta is consid-
ered the Ha 2rM — the basis of the moral fulcrum which is to
overthrow the superstitions of the surrounding nations. The
prospects of success are an interesting topic of inquiry.

The conductors of these establishments and their coadjutors
elsewhere, in building up the spiritual Jerusalem, are obliged while
rearing its walls with one hand, to hold in the other weapons of
defence. Besides contending against the nearer influences of
the Greek and Catholic superstitions, they have to withstand the
triple opposition of Moslemism, Judaeism, and Heathenism.
Still more, they take the ground of assailants. Their cause, they
think, is essentially militant, and as truly they are sworn to their
spiritual warfare as were the knights of old to personal battle
with the infidels. Barely tolerated by the government here,
they are resisted by the Christian authorities holding possessions
on the neighboring shores, whether Sicilian, Pontifical, Austrian
or Greek. The members of the Latin, Greek, and Arminian
churches in Palestine, Syria and Asia Minor, vehemently oppose
their designs. Even the Bishop from Mount Libanus, who a
few years since made a great noise in London, imposing on the
Telgnmouths, Wilberforces and others, and who, freighted with a
press and rich presents, returned to the East — a very promising,
but non-performing, man — this pseudo convert proves a rene-
gade. And the most violent opponent whom the little Mission
family at Beirout have to contend with, is this same cheat of a
bishop. Then comes, (to look no further), the array of Mos-
lemism darkening every shore of the upper Levant, and spread-

MISSIONARY DIFFICULTIF/.- — PROSPECTS. 203

ing its baleful shadows along the whole southern border of the
Mediterranean. It is as the darkness spoken of in the Oracles
of old, — a darkness so deep, that if the Light should shine
upon it, it would not comprehend it at all.

Now, what but perfect feebleness and insufficiency must be
thought of the means, to the end in view, whether employed in
this place, or operating by the instrumentality of a missionary wan-
dering here and there in Greece, Egypt, and the Holy Land ?
If, instead of a handful, a host of printers and missionaries were
to engage in the pious work of converting Mahometans and
enlightening the Gentiles, their toils must be ineffectual till
Christian Rulers shall unite expressly to countenance them, — to
spread a protection over them — and to bid them a cordial God-
speed by the way. The missionary, moreover, must be well
conversant with the language of a people whom he addresses,
else the trumpet gives an uncertain sound. The people, again,
besides willing hands to receive, must have eyes to read the
Books and Tracts bestowed upon them, else the press travails
for nought. Take the case of the last ; — of the populace in
Popish countries for whom the Tracts here issued are mostly
designed, not one in forty, if they ever get them, could read and
understand them ; and in Mahometan countries, scarce one in
five hundred. Perhaps contributors to Bible Societies, for
foreign supply, have not taken this matter into sufficient account.
As respects Tracts, there is another difficulty. So jealous are
the Catholic governments in this quarter of the action of the
Missionary presses at Malta, that their publications are subjected
to the law of contraband, and the port officers rigidly inspect all
baggage to guard against the possibility of their surreptitious in-
troduction into their several states. ^^

For my own part, I believe in the final universal triumphs of
Chrisfianity, but mainly by other means. Christianity acts by a
native, expansive pressure on the surrounding masses of super-
stition and gentilism. It is a pressure constant and all potent,
and, like the stone cut out from the mountain without hands, it
will at length crush those masses to powder. Christianity, in

204 MALTA.

Other words, is most favorable to civilization, and that power
which is Christianized and civilized is proportionably stronger
than a neighbouring state devoid of those elements of political
advancement. But besides this inherent force, special agencies
must facilitate the spread of pure religion. Christian governments
should unite, and one day they will unite, in countenancing and
promoting judicious measures, — nay more, in encouraging the
projection of such measures, — for the diffusion of the blessings of
the gospel. Serious obstacles, of course, will intervene, while
tbey hold to their present paltry and mutual jealousies ; and
while for a contemptible commercial interest, or in deference
to that phantom called Balance of Power, they will sustain a
Barbarian Regency on the one hand, and bolster up the toppling
throne of the Turkish Sultans on the other.

To pave the way for the labours of the Missionary and the
press, the machinery of schools on the Lancastrian or some
kindred plan, must be brought extensively to bear. A people
to be evangelized, must be taught to read ; else of what avail
are Tracts and Bibles? Native teachers must be raised up
and go forth to instruct and convert their brethren. And to
insure these, they must be selected and caught young. ' New
wine cannot be put into old bottles.' And in proclaiming
the message of glad tidings, the dogmas of a scholastic divinity
must be abated, and the simplicity of scriptural truth be
exhibited. Christianity, accordingly, should be well purified.
It sbould be salivated from some old corruptions, — and its
influences must operate more signally on the hearts and lives
of its nominal subjects, — and it will then act with a subduing
energy on the souls of those to whom it is addressed.

There is a species of romance which attaches itself, in certain
minds, to the contemplation of the efforts and endurances of a
foreign missionary. But let me tell them, there is no romance
in the actual trial. If a missionary comes to the Levant,
however high-blown his previous expectations, his enthusiasm
would soon cool. I have talked with gentlemen here, and
tbey speak very rationally and dispassionately on the subject.

A TOUR — ST PAUL'S BAY. 205

Theirs is a sober mood. They toil on, — patiently toil, — but
with a damp on their spirits. Apart from the labours of the
press, they have not made above a score of converts to their
views of Christianity, by oral and pulpit instruction, out of all the
crowded population of Malta ; and those converts are almost to
a man from the Catholic classes.

But, shall the missionary establishments be abandoned ? I
answer. No. The experiment is a fair one, and let it be con-
tinued. Bread is thus cast upon the waters ; and like the wheat
and rice of Egypt sown during the inundations of the Nile, when
the floods shall subside, though ' after many days,' it may spring
up into an abundant harvest. But let not expectations of suc-
cess be overweening. Especially, let not those in my country
come hither who flatter themselves, because they have run with
footmen and have not been wearied. In this region, they may
depend, they will have to strive against the swelling of
Jordan.

Feb. 20. — It is a hard life for a traveller to toil all day in
seeing things, and then sit up half the night in describing them.
But there is no help for it. The past has been a busy day, and
here I am at the ' eleventh hour,' wearied and spiritless, pinned
to my table at the task of recording. I shall make brief work
of it. and reserve some particulars to another date.

Today, I have made no less than the grand Tour of Malta.
It is not quite equal to the great Tour at home, — embracing the
Springs, the Falls, and Quebec, — but I have observed a few
scenes of a different character, perchance, from those which turn
up on the Buffalo route or the passage through the Cedars.

I was accompanied by a small party of intelligent friends,
sorted by pairs in caleches, and at the hour of sunrise we were
off. We travelled the first few miles by a route with which I was
familiar. Leaving this, the journey was pursued through narrow
and broken roads, till descending a small hill, the Bay of St
Paul opened at our feet. It was the first object in quest.

The Bay is a pretty deep, and broad inlet. At some distance
from the shore is a ledge of straggling rocks, the place probably

206 MALTA.

where the two seas met, spoken of by the sacred writer, on
wliich Paul's bark was wrecked. It was a weary distance
thence, for himself and companions to float 'on boards and
broken pieces of the ship,' ere ' escaping safe to land.'

On a part of the shore, where it is supposed from established
tradition that they were thrown, a small chapel is erected. A
little crucifix tops the roof, and we hailed that sign of the Chris-
tian's sanctuary. Its humble door stood open, inviting our
entrance, and within, we found a priest who kindly offered to
point out the litde that was remarkable. The altar and interior
decorations have more of simplicity than is usual in Catholic
churches. The pictures are characteristic of the interesting
spot. The subjects of three of them are, the Shipwreck of the
Apostle, his shaking off the Viper into the flame, and the Healing
of the father of Pubhus.

As respects the incident of the viper, it is but fair to say, that
no venomous reptiles are with certainty known to inhabit Malta at
this day. The popular opinion is, that Paul cursed them all, and
that they have never reappeared. Stories are told of poisonous
snakes having been brought from Barbary, which have died almost,
immediately on their arrival. But I apprehend, that it would
have transcended the powers of the saint to have entailed a
malediction on a whole tribe of animals to the end of time,
merely because he was bitten by one of their number in a certain
instance. It would have been better, according to human
notions of policy, that a few should have been spared as memo-
rials, by their undoubted venom, of the signal miracle wrought
in the personal preservation of the aposde. It is more natural
to suppose, if the race be actually extinct, that a population so
numerous as that of Malta would, for self security, have long
since extirpated animals of such dangerous properties. Just
as the rattlesnake has disappeared from the more densely
peopled districts of New England. However, that snakes there
are, and some bad looking ones in Malta, I can attest on the
authority of an English gentleman still on the island, who assured
me that on his first visit to St Paul's Bay, he started one of such

VIPERS — APOSTLE'S SHIPWRECK. 207

formidable appearance, that he was glad to avail himself of the
assistance of his servant in killing it. It was nearly as big as a
walking stick, and was acknowledged by the natives to be a
snake cf an unusual sort. The size of the reptile was not
inconsistent with its being a viper, as the species of this animal
found in the south of Europe, (the coluber berus,) is not unfre-
quently from two to three feet long. It is an inhabitant of a
dry stony ground like that of Malta.

The church did not long detain us. There was something
in the looks of the rocky shore, the bay and the reef without,
much more attractive. I confess it was with a pleasing solemnity
that I gazed upon these mute but expressive objects. These
objects, I said to myself, have been beheld by the great Apostle
to the gentiles. This strand has been printed by his venerable
footsteps. On yonder sea, the weather-beaten ship in which he
navigated, was tossed on that dark and dismal night when the
mariners deemed that they drew near to some country, — when,
sounding, they feared that they should have fallen upon rocks,
and longed for the breaking of welcome day. And here, within
this bay, when the ship had struck, and its stern was broken by
the violence of the waves, — Paul and Luke, the centurion, the
soldiery and seamen, on a few frail spars breasted the raging
billows in the desperate struggle for life and deliverance. In
the rescue of the first, the undaunted Christian herald was pre-
served, who already had preached the gospel from Jerusalem
round about to Illyricum, and was yet destined to publish its
tidings not only in Melita, but in Syracuse, in Rhegium, in
Puteoli and Rome, — yes, imperial Rome. — One of the party
read aloud the two last chapters of Acts, and we dwelt with
lively interest upon the sacred narrative.

I have spoken of the Bay ; but where is the creek, — that
' certain creek with a shore,' — into which ' they were minded if
possible to thrust in the ship ? ' I reply there is none, that is to
say, taking the term in the sense often used by my countrymen.
There are no rivers, large or small, in all Malta. The translators
employed the word, creek, in its old English sense, to express

208 MALTA.

a haven or cove, conformably to the Greek original which means
literally, a sinus, or bosom of waters. ^"^

Leaving the Bay of St Paul, — not, however, before picking
some wild flowers and gathering a iew shells and pebbles from
the beach as future remembrancers, — we pursued our journey
to the ancient capital of the island, Citta Vecchia. It looked ve-
nerable on the approach, — its gray walls and towers crowning
a commanding height, and betokening grandeur though in decay.
We ascended it by a rugged path, not unlike the dried channel
of a mountain torrent, and entered the city through a barrier
of considerable strength.

The interior of Citta Vecchia by no means corresponded to
the dignity of its outward aspect. We traversed dirty and nar-
row streets, and those mostly deserted. The population is very
disproportionate to the space within die walls, a considerable
part of which is covered by churches, a palace, town-hall and
the old cathedral. The people, what there were, had a poverty
stricken look, and a number of them soon mustered and tracked
us about, in the hope of picking up a few coppers and carlins.

One of the first streets I noticed bore the name of Publius,
or rather St Publius, for that is his tide now^-a-days ; and a
considerable promotion it is from the dignity of mere chief, or
protos, of the island, which he held in the time of Paul. The
cathedral itself is built on the foundation of a palace which, ac-
cording to ancient tradition, was occupied by this personage.
We examined it. Though a spacious structure, there was litde
that was otherwise striking. Its walls, it is true, are embellished
with marbles ; and among the decorations are a number of pic-
tures from the pencil of Matthias Preti, an artist who, though
born in Calabria, the Maltese claim as theirs by adopdon. His
style of composition is considered good, and his painting has the
merit of boldness ; but his shades are too dark, and his subjects
in general are as gloomy as his colouring.

We found the confessionals in demand. Several priests in
canonicals were giving a hearing to as many penitents, and at
the same time a furtive look toward ourselves.

GROTTO OP ST PAUL. 209

Quitting the cathedral, we were conducted to the Grotto of
St Paul. It is a cave divided into three separate parts by iron
grates. The first is used as a chapel, and was so appropriated,
it is asserted, by the primitive Christians. The second com-
partment is a sort of natural laboratory, for what purpose will
be soon specified ; and the third is a little sanctuary regarded
with unusual veneration, as it is said that St Paul was lodged in
it by the centurion who had him in charge, and who was bound
to treat him as a prisoner. But this is hearsay, and by no means
credible. For the cave is very damp, and the Apostle would
have had to have wrought another miracle, equal to that of the
viper, to have guarded himself against colds and fever. In this
inner division of the grotto there is an altar, and also a fine mar-
ble statue of St Paul.

I return now to the second apartment. The excavation has
been made from a peculiar chalky earth, or rather from a
species of soft whitish stone easily pulverized and absorbent
in its nature. This substance is highly esteemed for its medi-
cinal properties. It is counted a febrifuge and an efficacious
alterative in disorders engendered by acrimonious humours.
Technically speaking, when exhibited, it is given in powdered
doses, and acts as a diaphoretic, producing copious perspirations.
Its repute is not confined to Malta, many boxes of the article
having been sent abroad. Its taste is not unlike magnesia, and
veiy probably it has some of the properties of that medicine.
But this is not all the wonder. The earth, or stone, though
continually in demand, is said never to waste, and to be always
reproducing. Of course, it is a standing miracle in the eyes of
the people, and St Paul has all the honour of it. But admitting
the fact, it is explainable by natural causes, as the stone may
be generated by a kind of petrifaction produced by constant
moisture. And as for the curative effects, any one who has re-
marked the power of the imagination in controlling diseases,
need be at no loss to account for its virtue. A superstitious
Maltese, therefore, would stand a better chance of benefit-
ing by it than a cold, calculating Protestant. Nevertheless^
27

210 MALTA.

though belonging to the latter class, we bore away an ample
stock of the material.

The Catacombs were the next object of attention, and they
well deserved to be explored. But once descended into such
a labyrinth, there would be no emerging for a while ; and as
there are other matters in reserve, I will pause at the entrance
and suspend description to another date.

Feb. 21 . — 1 resume my narrative. The Catacombs of Citta
Vecchia are of vast extent. So numerous are the passages,
so irregular and intricate, that the clue of Ariadne would be re-
quisite to thread all their mazes. No footstep now dares to
explore their utmost limits. The title of Subterraneous City
has been significantly given to these extraordinary caverns.

Provided with tapers, we went down to the labyrinth by a
narrow flight of steps, and took special care to follow close in
the wake of our guides. We entered first a kind of gallery,
narrow and gloomy, pierced, on either side, with openings into
ancient sepulchres resembling the mouths of ovens. The sepul-
chres were of different sizes, to fit the human stature in every
stage, from the infant's to the adult's. From the gallery other
corridors branched, into several of which we entered, and all
like the first were found lined with tombs. We then traversed
a passage of considerable extent, which now and then opened
into small chambers, or squares, the sepulchres on the sides
of which seemed to have been destined for the more distinguish-
ed dead. They were better formed, and made generally
broader and deeper, to admit bodies with more ample swathings
and other integuments, than those first noticed. We examined
a number of the tombs and found in them only dust, and this
chiefly a calcined deposition from the crumbling rock, whence
all the Catacombs have been excavated. In one only, I de-
tected the fragment of a human bone.

In some of the repositories, the part on which the head of the
dead person rested was raised three inches from the bottom.
This rocky pillow was cut in such a manner as to fit the shape
both of the head and neck. A i^vi sepulchres, which were

CATACOMBS - CITTA VECCHEA. 211

broader than others, presented two such excavations. It is
probable that they were destined for the bodies of those who
were united in tenderest affection or relationship, — a pair of
lovers, perhaps, or a conjugal couple.

As far as we proceeded, we could discern these dismal pas-
sages stretching beyond in dark perspective. As the lights were
held up and sent a feeble ray in the direction they pursued,
other crypts were observed with dieir narrow apertures, indica-
ting those various ranges to have been all so many mansions of
the dead.

The origin of the Catacombs is lost in antiquity. Whenever
begun, they were extensive in the days of the Romans, two
thousand years ago. They have since been enlarged, chiefly,
it is supposed, in the times of the lower empire. That the ob-
ject in commencing them was to quarry stone for the purposes
of building, is probable ; but other objects were in view in pros-
ecuting the excavations. As they were too ample to serve as
mere receptacles for the dead, they have unquestionably fur-
nished retreats, and even abodes, for the living. The primitive
Christians fled to them for refuge. Afterwards, the members of
sects, called heredcal, sought asylums in them from the cruel
persecutions of one another. And in later times, the inhabitants
of Malta have been glad to fly to them for safety during the in-
vasions of barbarians, — Goths, Vandals, Moors and Turks.

To us it was cheering to emerge from their melancholy soli-
tudes, and come forth once more to the air and light of day.
Tired of seeing, and no less so of wondering, we soon betook
ourselves to a neighbouring Albergo for rest and food. Our
caleches had been previously sent thither with some stores of
provisions; and it was well that these had been taken with
us from Valetta, else we must have suffered the privations of
Lent without the merit of the penance. The inn, though the
best in Citta Vecchia, was so wretched a place, that we could
not have entered it at all had we not been buried alive for a part
of the morning ; and any tenement therefore above ground was
comparatively welcome. It was a large, half ruinous edificej

212 MALTA.

nearly naked of furniture, and the entrance to the hall of state
assigned us, was by a broken flight of stone steps, built outside,
and leading up from the court. For the sake of the host, we
called for such articles as the house might offer, but it was a full
half hour before so much as an egg was produced. The fact
was, the house had nothing ; and the family, it should seem,
instead of feeding travellers, expected to be fed by them. For
besides their charging us passablement bien for our shelter, and
gathering up the pretty liberal remains of our own supplies, I
found that from one of my baskets a botde of old TenerifFe, and
some knives and forks, had been stolen in the outset.

Now as I do not like to read descriptions of repasts, with either
their agremens or desagremens, in the pages of other itineraries,
I only insert this to give some idea both of the condition of
things and, mayhap, the character of the people in Citta Vec-
chia. However, we got through our entertainment at last, in
some sort, and meanwhile were edified by a troop of ragged
gazers assembled in the court, and a band of noisy musicians,
mustered no one knew whence, but who must play for our
special gratification.

One w^ord more of this forlorn city. It was founded by the
Tyrians, and called by them Melita. According to Diodorus,
its buildings in their times were grand, and in extent consider-
able. From Tyre it passed into the hands of its daughter, Car-
thage, and, (not to be too minute,) we find it at length in the
possession of the Saracens and its name changed to Medina,
signifying The City, by way of distinction. When it fell to the
crown of Spain through Sicily, it took another title, — Citta
Notabile, — and, now, bears the appellation of Citta Vecchia, i. e.
The Ancient. The mutation of its names reminds one of the
famous Tiger in Paris, who lived to answer to six titles, —
royal, republican, imperial, then royal again, and so on. But
the royalty of Citta Vecchia, I fear, has forever gone. The
Arabs, to strengthen it, reduced its circuit. And in later
times it has been further diminished, till, though stately without,
it has fallen to a shadow, at least to the shell of its former self.

DISTRIBUTIVE POPULATION. 213

The residue of our excursion led us over interesting parts of
the island. We stopped to regale ourselves in the Grand Mas-
ters' gardens, and did not overlook other curious objects. ^^
The journey served to correct some general impressions of this
singular island, and to fix in my mind more distinct notions of
its features and peculiarities.

The great population of Malta is more extraordinary when
we contemplate the fact, that by far the larger part is condensed
on half of the island, I mean, even setting aside Valetta and its
immediate suburbs. Let aline be drawn across Malta north and
south, a little above Citta Vecchia, or assuming for that line the
old cordon of intrenchments noticed in page 155, then the east-
ern division, in which the modern city is placed, will be found
to contain all the principal boroughs or casals, (viz. twentytwo,)
on the whole island. Only some hamlets and scattered houses,
in addition to the military erections, are to be seen in the west-
ern section. The face of the native rock has proved there far
more stubborn and untractable than on this side ; and the air
towards the coasts is complained of as unwholesome. The
sparser population in that quarter depend principally on fishing
for support, and indeed they have plied the coral fishery with
some success ; still, as has been remarked, the great body of the
inhabitants determines to the opposite direction.

I was particularly struck with the evidence of this, on ap-
proaching La Valetta last evening. The signs of accumulating
and accumulated population began to spread themselves on
every side. And when the towers of the city were descried,
and its suburbs, like broad wings, were seen stretching along the
line of the horizon, the assemblage seemed to constitute but one
and the same, grand and extensive city.

There is a project on foot, started by some intelligent and
enterprising men, both for taking up the remaining rocky wastes
of Malta and, by rendering them productive, giving employment
to its redundant poor. I have conversed with gentlemen inter-
ested in the scheme, and have endeavoured to ascertain the

214 MALTA.

capabilities of the grounds intended to be worked, by observa-
tions on the spot.

The general surface of Malta, it should be borne in mind,
is a crust of calcareous rock, the upper part of which is
hard, but that being removed, the interior substance is found
soft and porous. Below tliis, a substratum of earth and
gravel is often detected. The hard superficial shell is, in gene-
ral, only a few inches in thickness. Roots of trees and shrubs,
if they can work beneath this, are found to insinuate themselves
into the proximate layers with ease. They pierce, without split-
ting, the bed of the rock, and though growing in the heart of
such a rough material, they attain a size equal to that when they
vegetate in common soils. The plan in contemplation is, to cut
through the crust, and from the softer stone to scoop out cavities
of a yard in depth, and, filling them with earth, to plant mulberry
trees for silkworms, and then letting them take their chance.

To explain the utilities of such a scheme, if practicable, as I
think it is, the following calculation is offered. The superficies
of Malta is reckoned at sixteen thousand two hundred and fifteen
salms. A salm, or salma as it should strictly be written, is equal to .
three acres. Of the whole area, three thousand salms now unpro-
ductive, are believed capable of being reclaimed for the objects
stated above. A thousand mulberry trees, it is computed, could be
planted on one salm. This I think too large a calculation ; but let
it pass. By this estimate, then, on the reserved area of three thou-
sand salms, three millions of mulberry stocks could be set out.
The product of silk which the worms nourished on all those trees
could supply, may be put down at fifteen thousand quintals, — a
quintal being equal to one hundred and seventy English pounds'
weight. In the proportion of every quintal of silk, ten men must
be employed, — or rather ten hands, whether men, women, or
children, — as their services would be requisite for the charge and
feeding the worms, and for taking care of the trees and grounds.
Accordingly, the whole number of hands necessary would give
the multiple of one hundred and fifty thousand, a sum more
than equal to all the population of Malta.

GEOLOGY OF THE ISLAND. 215

Measures are in train to cany into effect this project.
Some capitalists in London are favourably inclined to the specu-
lation, and their aid is confidently expected. A number of trees
have already been introduced from Italy. But those in the
neighbourhood of Marseilles are reputed the best, and the re-
maining supplies are looked for from that quarter. ^^

Malta has some geological peculiarities worthy of notice. In
the first place, there is nothing volcanic about any part of its
structure, contrary to the phenomena of so many other isles in
the Mediterranean. Sometimes, during great eruptions of
Mount iEtna^ it has been partially shaken by earthquakes, but no
serious damage has happened thereby within the memory of
man.

Besides a few fossil productions, such as petrifactions and cal-
careous concretions, the island offers nothing indeed particularly
deserving a place in a cabinet of natural history. The remark
applies also to Goza and Cumino, whose general formation is pre-
cisely similar to Malta. But what is truly extraordinary is, that
the relative position of these three islands, the analogy of their sub-
stances, and almost uniform resemblance in the arrangement, dip
and inclination of their respective strata, can leave no doubt in
reflecting minds that they all were once united ; and in fact, that
they are only fragments of a vast insular mass the remainder of
which has been carried away by some mighty inundation. The
whole circumference of the islands exhibits plain marks of cor-
rosion by waters ; and the rocks which edge the coasts are the
obvious remains of the portion which has been destroyed.

The broadest part of Maka lies to the east of the city of Va-
letta. It gradually becomes narrower as it lengthens in the
opposite direction ; and Cumino and Goza, separated by narrow
straits, are placed successively in the same range towards the
west. The general aspect of this island may be compared to
an inclined plane, extending from South-south-west to North-
north-east. The principal defiles and valleys run constantly
in that course ; and on the side where the coast is most level,
they form those fine ports which render Maka so famous a

216 MALTA.

resort for trade and navigation. The straits of Cumino are pro-
bably the basins of similar valleys, the earth below having sunk or
been washed away. Goza exhibits the same features, but it is
higher than Malta, and at the west and south it is faced with
elevated and steep rocks. ^^

Another circumstance to be observed is, that in the hollows
and vertical clefts dispersed over Malta and its sister isles, large
quantities of a peculiar clay, both gray and red, are often dis-
covered. This substance, deposited in heaps, is evidently no
native of the isles themselves. It is a puzzle with geologists,
Whence came it ? The answer is, — with that mighty deluge
which ages ago swept over the rocky mass that originally em-
braced all the islands, and of which they remain only the shatter-
ed fragments. The next question is, whence came that deluge ?
We can only say, from the west, incontestably ; but what
caused it, is beyond human powers of solution.

Having cut the knot with geologists, I turn to the antiquarian.
He asks, when did this deluge happen ? I shall use the privilege
of a Yankee (not Roman) citizen, by replying in the shape of
other questions. Was not the era the same with that of the
deluge of Deucalion, which chronologists put down 1500 years
before the vulgar era ? Was not the deluge of Deucalion, which
ravaged Thessaly, one and the same with the third of the floods
in the order mentioned by Xenophon, and which, he says,
buried all Attica with its waters ? Was not this the terrible in-
undation which broke over the mountain chain at the entrance of
Gibraltar, of which the Pillars of Hercules are the survivers, —
an inundation which raised the bed of the Mediterranean from
an inconsiderable sea to its present immense expanse, and cov-
ered shores once naked as are now the fertile valleys in the basin
of the Mississippi ^ Was not that inundation occasioned by the
submersion of the celebrated Isle of Atlantis in the Western
Ocean, understood as no fiction, but as an actual territory, an-
ciently of great extent ? And are not the scattered groups of
the Azores, Cape Verds and Canaries not only remains of such
an island, but proofs of its catastrophe being caused by the action

ANCIENT INUNDATION. 217

of volcanic fires, which, wasting its foundations, at length pro-
duced the decadence and wreck of the superincumbent con-
tinent ?

In support of the suggestions contained in these queries, it
may be urged, that the account of Plato is very distinct and em-
phatic in relation to the existence and disappearance ol' a
vast tract of land in the Atlantic Ocean, (whence its name has
been derived ;) — tliat the land, if such there was, very natural-
ly connected itself with the West Indian Islands, many of which,
especially the Carribbees, are volcanic ; — that, moreover, after
strong easterly gales, vitrified substances, tufia, and light pumices
are often thrown by the waves on the windward shores of the
Antilles, which would seem to indicate the bottom of the ocean,
thence towards the Cape Verds, to be covered with volcanic frag-
ments, the debris of some great isle or continent. — As for the
Straits of Gibraltar, that the sea has broken over the lofty ridges
which bound them, and which anciently formed a solid barricade
across the pass, no one can doubt who has looked at them with
a careful eye. Aside from general indications of a flood having
washed over their summits from the west, I saw, on clambering
the upper acclivities of the peak of Gibraltar, numerous little
hollows and other abrasions in the solid rock, such as are usually
found at the foot of heavy waterfalls.

But to return to Malta : — since the primitive inundation and
changes which it produced, some serious disruptions and subsi-
dings have taken place on the island, which, as they have hap-
pened near the coast, may be explained on natural causes. The
soft stone of Malta which always inclines to waste by the influ-
ence of the atmosphere, decomposes more rapidly on exposure
to sea air, or water. A kind of saline efflorescence is contracted
which reduces it to powder. As that crumbles, the crust drops
off, and other menstrua continue to form, to be similarly dis-
placed till the whole mass is destroyed. By this process, in ad-
dition to the direct action of the waves, deep hollows are worn
in many parts of the shore which occasion the disintegration of
the mass above, or sometimes an extraordinary subsidence. A
28

218 MALTA.

memorable instance of the last, must have occurfed on the
coast not far from the pleasure grounds of Boschetto. Vestiges
of wheels cut into the rock may be traced to the precipice over
the sea. The ruts are about four inches wide, and from ten to
twelve deep. They traverse a large extent of rocky ground,
and on approaching the shore take an inclined direction, and
the tracks may be perceived under the water at a great distance
and depth, — indeed, as far as the eye can discern anything
through the waves. Nothing more is known of them than what
meets the sight. History and tradition are alike silent respecting
the period of their origin.

As in my notes of this date I have adverted to one branch of
husbandry, in remarking on the adaptation of the mulberry,as a
silk-worm feeder, to the soil and wants of Malta, it will not be
foreign to the topics if I say something of the attention paid
here to the culture of another valuable tree, the fig. It is one
of the most serviceable trees with which nature has enriched the
warmer climates, and the mode of propagating the fruit adopted
in this island, is interesting from proving the credibility of some
accounts of that process transmitted from the ancients, which
have elsewhere been received with considerable distrust.

This class of trees may be divided into two species, namely,
the domestic fig and the wild fig. Of the thirty varieties which
naturalists have enumerated under the former species, seven or
eight are cultivated in Malta. The best are those commonly
known as the round fig and the long fig. The second bears
most fruit ; the first is very rich and succulent, and is earliest
in ripening. The wild fig-tree resembles^ in all its parts, the
domestic fig-tree, but it is utterly useless other than as aiding
the maturation of the fruit of the latter. This is the operation
which has been disputed by some who, because they did not
see it, would not believe it, or perhaps they thought, if it were
proved, that figs would not afterwards taste quite so pleasantly
as before. ^^

The facts are these ; — wild fig-trees are the natural haunts
of a peculiar kind of gnats found only in their neighbourhood.

CULTURE OF THE FIG. 219

They puncture the figs and deposlte their eggs in them, which,
after a while, produce little worms of a shining black colour,
which are considered a species of very small ichneumons. At
a certain time these worms, transformed into small gnats them-
selves, puncture other figs, and thus the process continues in
succession. The kernels of the figs are the habitations of the
future gnats, and figs which these insects refuse to enter, languish,
become dry and shrivelled, and fall off without ripening.
On the other hand, those which are fecundated by the puncture
of the gnats, visibly increase in size, and the seeds, which are
larger than in the domestic fig, soon fill the whole cavity of the
rind.

The service which, as I have said, they render to the domestic
figs, remains to be explained. The first of the two species
most prized in Malta gives a double gathering yearly, namely,
in June and August ; the other bears but once, and is the same
sort which is celebrated for its fruitfulness in the Greek Islands.
The June crop of the former so far exhausts the tree, that its
second would be of little account unless a remedy were at hand
in the little insects, which nestle in the wild figs. When the
summer crop makes its appearance, the Maltese are careful to
suspend in different parts of a domestic fig-tree, several wild
figs strung on a thread. The flies or gnats which proceed from
these, introduce themselves into the domestic figs, and by their
punctures cause in them a fermentation, which contributes to
their ripening. This process is called Caprification, from
caprificus, the scientific name of the wild fig-tree.

As respects the second sort of good figs, the same conservative
and quickening operation is necessary for reasons substantially
similar. Being a most prolific bearer, if left to itself it would
overwork its strength. The young figs sprout so abundantly
from the stems, that frequently the branches cannot be seen on
account of the fruit with which they aie loaded. Accordingly,
if the tree be neglected, a great quantity of the fruit must fall
unripened, and be lost. But by distributing a few wild figs
among the boughs, the litde ichneumons which they breed, issue

220 MALTA.

forth, and soon provide for themselves snug quarters, or at least,
secure them for their progeny, in the good figs. With their
keen little tweezers, in the shape of a pair of sharp pointed teeth,
they bore a passage and stow themselves quietly away ; and by
the juices which they circulate, and other agencies which they set
to work, a fermentation follows, which so far accelerates the
ripening of the fruit, that by the time it would else drop
abortive, the major part is fit to be gathered in good condition,
and in the end almost all the crop is saved. The effect pro-
duced is something the same as any one may witness with us in
the quickening of worm-eaten fruit, such as pears, plums, or
cherries. In the case of figs, the caprification is found to hasten
the maturation full three weeks, i. e. in kinds which naturally would
require two months ; and the difference in the amount of pro-
duce is immense. A tree of the second variety, for example,
which left to itself, would scarcely yield twentyfive pounds of
figs, ripe and fit for drying, will, if caprificated, yield ten fold
more, namely, two hundred and seventyfive pounds, at least. ^^

The facts contained in this recital, may not be over and above
agreeable to the lovers of this choice fruit ; especially when it
is added, that though few of the figs of Malta find their way
across the Atlantic, many from Greece do, via Smyrna and this
very entrepot ; and the figs of the Archipelago are unfortunately
produced by a similar process of caprification. The solar mi-
croscope has brought to hght some ugly looking creatures, which
batten on the surface and amid the sweet frostings of this delec-
table fruit ; but it could not tell all the story of the prior pro-
bings of gnats, and of ichneumons gambolling in its little cells,
and of eggs and their exuviae being embosomed in every seed.
But the microscope has unveiled many other unpleasant truths,
and if we were to stop to interrogate it too curiously, it might
grudge us every drop of water.

Perhaps it is as well if we walk on in ignorance of some
matters, which, if they should make us v^iser, would make us
no merrier. The wine-bibber, for example, in quaffing the
ruby liquid, need not be told, especially if he prizes the vdnes

CONTRIVANCES 221

of Spain and Portugal, that he sips a beverage expressed from
the juicy grape by human feet, notwithstanding it be a fact, that
the peasantry of those countries literally ' tread the wine-press'
to furnish the draught which sparkles in his cup. Nor did it
administer any special gratification to myself, on being apprised
that one third of the bread which feeds the population of Malta
is kneaded by Maltese feet, till my considerate host comforted
me by die assurance, that the supplies for my own table are
manufactured by a different process. Yet every soldier in the
garrison and many an inhabitant of the town, will, with tomorrow's
sun, eat with a keen relish his biscuit or his roll, though at this
moment if either should step into a certain Strada, and explore
a certain great bakery, he would find a score or two, not of
hands, but of feet, busy in plying the preparatives for the morn-
ing's meal.

In fact, a native of the New World, if he be taught at home
something of the meaning of a slight of hand, must visit Europe
to learn what is meant by a slight of foot. He will find that,
while in Scotland linen is washed, in Spain wine expressed, and
in Malta dough is kneaded by the feet, — all these customs
have a venerable precedent in the example of ' the ox that
treadeth out the corn.'

CHAPTER VIII.

MALTA.

Catholic Processions. — Government Palace; Paintings. — Armoury of the
Knights 5 Trophies. — Giraffe. — Arrival of his Majesty's ship Asia. —
Egyptian Mummy. — Burmola and Vittoriosa 5 St Angelo. — Opening of the
Carnival. — Second Day of the Sports. — Indulgences ; Votive Gifts. — Euro-
clydon. — Conclusion of the Carnival — An Incident. — Tragic Tale. —
Morning Contemplations. — Hospitals. — House of Industry — Asylum for
the Poor — Insane Department. — Foundling. — Monte di Pietd. — Con-
servatorio. — Early Marriages. — Monastic Vows. — Morals of the Knights.
— Customs. — Festivals. — St Gregory.

La Valetta 5 Feb. 23. — I had scarcely seated myself to
the task of bringing up and arranging ray memoranda of some
recent observations, when the bell of the passing host called me
to the window. A procession was moving to the house of a
dying Catholic, to administer the viaticum to his departing soul.

First came three youths, in white robes thrown over their
common dress. The youth who walked in the centre, bore a
red banner. One of his companions was the bell-ringer, and
the other carried a vase, probably with the holy water. Next
marched twenty men and boys, in files on either side of the
street. They were tawdrily clad, and their office was to bear
large flaring lanterns, — lighted lanterns, I mean, — for with-
out them no procession moves by day or night. Their use
on this occasion might have been spared, for it was broad noon,
and the sun was shining without a cloud. Then followed three
or four priests ' in snow-white stoles and order due.' After them
appeared the principal figurant, an old priest, bearing the conse-
crated wafer and the element for extreme unction. He walked

PROCESSIONS TO THE DYING. 223

under a canopy of crimson stuff, ornamented with white and
gold trimmings, which was carried hy four attendants. Two or
three other priests hrought up the rear. All were bareheaded,
and they moved with noisy chant, in addition to the clatter of
the hand-bell. As the procession passed, the groups in the
streets knelt, uncovered, nor did they rise till it had gone by.

This was quite a modest procession. An evening or two
since, a cortege of double the number moved for the same
object to another house. It was near the hour of ten, and then
the lanterns were of service. Some of the officials bore huge
flambeaux, and the glare of the numerous hghts turned darkness
into day. Such a procession denoted the greater wealth and
consequent piety of the dying man ; for in Catholic lands money
is merit. The offices of the church and the consolations of re-
ligion must be bought and paid for, at fixed cash prices ; and woe
to the poor wretch who cannot huy the prayers of a priest, or
the absolution of the church.

It is to be observed that the men and boys, or what may be
called the privates, in these processions, are not in the regular
pay of the priests. When the last office of religion is to be per-
formed to the sick, and a message is sent for the attendance of an
ecclesiastic, as he cannot move without a procession, this form is
arranged according to the quality, wealth, and munificence of the
person to be visited. A muster is made from the mob in the
streets. They are tricked out from the standing wardrobe of the
church ; their parts and places are cast and assigned ; a comple-
ment of priests in ordinary is then drafted to grace and
set off the show, and thus escorted the spiritual father repairs
to the house of sickness. The procession waits at the door
while he goes in and performs the ceremonial required, and
when it is finished, he returns in the same state with which he
went. The officials unfrock, deposit their lanterns and other
implements in the church's storehouse, and are then dismissed,
each with a trifling gratuity, to mix indiscriminately with the
populace abroad.

224 MALTA.

I will not stop to offer reflections on the emptiness of such a
ceremonial ; nor inquire of what possible use it can be to the
dying soul, other than to cheat it into a dream of false security,
by converting the notion of extreme unction into a flattering
unction. Nor need I suggest the tendency of such forms to
keep the people in convenient awe of the clergy, as men whose
province it solely is to reconcile them to God, and whose rites
wear the appearance of magical charms, inexplicable indeed in
their nature, but of efficacy not to be questioned. — I pass to
more agreeable topics.

The Government palace contains many apartments deserving
of attention. The building itself is an immense pile, and though
no ways distinguished on the exterior by architectural embellish-
ments, it looks better for its simplicity and makes an imposing
appearance. The suite of apartments, formerly the state rooms
of the grand masters, is a noble range. I visited them in order,
— the levee, cabinet, drawing, dining, breakfast, bed and anti-
rooms, — and was gratified with the survey. Among the
paintings, I remarked two very fine portraits of L'Isle Adam and
John La Valette. Several scriptural pieces are of great merit ;
two of them, which are acknowledged originals, are the Saviour
by Guido, and the Death of Abel by Espagnolet. The best paint-
ings ornament the walls of one of the larger apartments ; all the
subjects of which are sacred, save a magnificent full length of Cath-
erine Second of Russia. It is abominable that the portrait of that
imperial strumpet should be admitted to such company. What
is worse, it occupies the most conspicuous place in the room ;
and, as if to insult religion, the painting representing the Saviour
is placed by its side. The empress is depicted in all the pride
of beauty, and with every trait of frondess voluptuousness.

Besides these paintings, the walls and ceiling of the great cor-
ridors connecting with the state apartments, are covered with
others, chiefly frescos. The subjects are historical, represent-
ing various engagements of the knights with the Turks. I
observed some spirited views of the siege of Malta, and many

PALACE — ARMOURY. 225

fine heads of the old chevaliers interspersed in the compart-
ments.

I looked next into the armoury. It occupies a very large hall,
and its collections are arranged with the finest effect. It contains
ten thousand stand of muskets, and twentytwo thousand car-
bines and pistols. There is a good assortment likewise of cut-
lasses, boarding-pikes and rifles. Many of the last are provided
with short swords, so contrived as to be easily fixed to the tops
like bayonets and used as such, or be taken off in case of need
and employed as sabres.

But by far the most interesting part of the establishment is the
collection of armour and trophies belonging to the old knights.
Of the former, no less than three hundred suits are preserved ;
some are very superb, being made of finest steel, damasked with
gold. The cuirass of AlofFde Vignacourt, a most beautiful
specimen, was particularly pointed out. A portrait of the noble
chief himself is suspended near it. It is one of the finest heads
I have ever seen. The painting remains in fine preservation
and is considered the master-piece of its artist, the celebrated
Michael Angelo de Caravaggio.

The ponderousness of some of these suits of armour, weigh-
ing not less than fifty or sixty pounds, proves that the men who
wore them, were possessed of iron frames as well as iron hearts.
Many of the suits are placed on wooden frames accommodated
to their size and shape, and as the images are helmed and
visored, they look in front exactly like the old warriors risen
from the dead. Each holds a spear and shield ; and a visiter
almost involuntarily salutes them with a feeling of respect ap-
proaching to awe, as he walks along the grim and silent line.
The armour was only designed to cover the front and sides of
the human body. The other parts were left unprotected. For
the nether extremities would be defended by parapets, and
the disdain of the knights to turn their backs on a foe was
a sufficient safeguard for all the rest.

I noticed one breastplate which had been indented in no less
than five places by balls, any one of which would have been mor-
29

226 MALTA.

tal without such protection. The specimens of antique weapons
were very curious. They comprised spears, battle-axes, pikes
with hatchets at the top, as used in the times of the Tudors and
Stuarts, — bows of iron and steel, of great size and powerful
spring, — quivers of the form of the ancient pharetra, the lower
part like an immense nautilus shell, and made so that the arrows
might lie partly across the division at the top, — likewise arque-
busses, a species of firelock double the calibre of ordinary mus-
kets, and constructed with pivots, something on the plan of a
large telescope, whereby they might be fixed to the walls of ram-
parts and turned to any point at pleasure. The victorious ban-
ners of the Order were gracefully suspended in different parts of
the hall. The emblem of the flag was very simple, — a broad
white cross on a red field, the arms of the cross extending from
side to side and meeting in the centre of the square.

Among the trophies taken from the Turks, besides standards
and the more common sorts of arms, I remarked some superb
fusees and Damascene sabres. Nothing could be more beautiful.
I was struck with another relic conspicuous for ingenuity, though
not likely to be copied in these days. It was nothing less than
a nine-pounder made of ropes. The ropes were not large but
very strong, closely twisted together and cemented with tar.
They were covered with a paper composition, something like
the East India or black-japan ware. The inside of this singular
field-piece was lined with a thin casing of copper. It was taken
from the Turks in fight, and had actually been used by them
during the engagement in which it was captured. Harry the
Eighth's ' policies ' were no match for this.

Descending from the armoury, I was taken into a basement
room of the palace to inspect a living curiosity no less novel.
It was a camelopard, or giraffe, one of the two which the
Pacha of Egypt lately presented, respectively, to the Kings of
England and France. That, destined for the latter, has already
proceeded to Marseilles. This is waiting in Malta for the
advance of a milder season, to admit its transportation to the
cold and humid climate of Britain. It is said that they are the

GIRAFFE. 227

only animals of the kind which have heen biought to Europe
since the days of the crusades.

The giraffe answered very much to the notions I had formed
of it. Its fore-legs are very long, those behind remarkably short.
Its skin is beautifully spotted like the leopard, and its tall, slender
neck elevates a head, not much larger than a stag's, ten or twelve
feet from the ground. Its body is about the size of a moose ;
and the line of inclination on the back, as it rises toward the
neck, is very steep. The animal is perfectly docile. It would
stoop its head to be patted, and seemed grateful for the caresses
it received. Its eye is particularly beautiful. The food of the
animal is grain.

Three attendants are specially charged with the safe-keeping
of this extraordinary creature ; two of them are native Egyp-
tians, the other is a Moor. As w^e entered, they were taking
their mid-day repast, consisting of rice, salad and macarpon.
They used no knives nor spoons, but confined themselves to a
sort of fork which they used very adroitly. They were in full
Oriental dress, their heads covered with large turbans. Their
posture likewise was ' a-la-mode,' as we found them seated
cross-legged on their hams upon a low platform, and looking
like tailors as well as Turks. The entrance of visiters, did not
discompose them. After quietly finishing their simple meal,
they lighted their long pipes, and smoking with great gravity,
scrutinized ' the Franks,' while the Franks continued to scru-
tinize the looks and attitudes of the stranger quadi-uped.

The survey of the palace was not yet completed. At least
so thought the old steward, who insisted on taking myself and
companion down to the cellars, and displaying the accommoda-
tions there. They are very extensive and well arranged. The
cellars are excavated from the primitive rock, and are continued
quite round the entire substructions of the immense building.
The Marquis of Hastings improved them considerably, making
them more spacious and airy, though still they are too dark.
We tasted the Marquis' wine, and did not forget to drink to his
memory. He left large stores. Most of the wine is already

228 MALTA.

packed, and all of it is shortly to be sent to England. Perhaps
it will go in the ship which will take the camelopard. It will be
sure, in that case, not to be meddled with by the disciples of
Mahomet. Before leaving the palace, I should observe that I
found many of the apartments in great disorder. Preparations
were making for the reception of the new governor. Gen. Pon-
sonby, who is expected to land on the 28th instant. Indeed
everything seems on ' the move.' Old things are passed away.
Hastings is dead and Ponsonby, already in command, is im-
patient to plant foot in the palace. Sir Harry Neale is recalled,
and he sails in a few days for England, taking the Revenge
with him. Admiral Codrington, his successor, arrived this eve-
ning in the Asia, eightyfour. From the house-top terrace I
saw his noble ship on its entrance into the harbour. It stood in
very gallantly with all its canvas spread, and streamers flying.
There was no salute, as it was just sunset, and the ceremonial
of gunpowder compliments is deferred till tomorrow. ^^

Feb. 24. — I called this morning, by invitation, at a friend's
house to examine a Theban mummy, which was lately consigned
to him by a merchant in Alexandria. I found it in excellent
preservation ; and though I have seen the best which are kept
in the museums of western Europe, as well as the very fine
specimen lately sent to the United States, I have beheld no one
superior to this.

The outer cases had been opened, and the integuments re-
moved from about the face, and one foot and hand ; but the
rest of the coverings remained precisely as they had been
arranged by Egyptian undertakers, three thousand years ago.
The casings have preserved their colours with perfect brilliancy.
The ibis, banbeede, cow of Isis, and numerous hieroglyphics
were beautifully painted in different compartments. Over the
body coverings consisting of ' the fine linen of Egypt,' there was
a vesture of beads, very curious. The mummy was a female.
So carefully had the features been embalmed, that the expres-
sion could be read with great distinctness. There was a small
box, hermetically sealed, which accompanied the subject.

THEBAN MUMJViy — VITTORIOSA.

229

When opened, it was found to contain a black, pitchy substance.
This enclosed an inner envelope, which held a human heart,
and a quantity of pure blood. It had been taken from a niche
in the crypt whence the mummy had been removed, and the
heart had therefore once beat in the bosom of this Theban fair.
Surveying these solemn relics, the quaint but forcible lines of
Horace Smith occurred to me, beginning with, — 'And thou
hast walked about, how strange a story!' Nothing can be
happier than his sentiments, with all their peculiarities of manner ;
and every serious mind must respond to the closing reflection as
no less just than beautiful ; —

' Why should this worthless tegument endure,

If its undying guest be lost forever ?
O, let us keep the soul embalmed and pure

In living virtue, that when both must sever.
Although corruption may our frame consume
Th' immortal spirit in the skies may bloom.'

The gentleman to whom the mummy was sent, expressed a
desire to transmit it to America. Being a very valuable speci-
men, it is priced at two thousand dollars. But as that which
was shipped to Boston in the summer of 1826 has been viewed
by multitudes of my countrymen, and public curiosity been con-
siderably allayed in consequence, I did not feel authorized to
pronounce on the chances of success of another, even if better,
as probable. I should add that the most ample vouchers, in
addition to the intrinsic evidence, were submitted to my inspection
of the genuineness of this Egyptian antiquity, and the fact of its
exhumation from the catacombs of Thebes.

Leaving the mummy, I took a boat and crossed to Burmola.
Having rambled over that Burgh, I walked round to Vittoriosa.
They are both more of fortresses than towns, and notwithstand-
ing my previous observations of the powerful defences of Malta,
J was struck with the amazing strength of these additional bul-
warks. I entered Vittoriosa through three ponderous gateways,
and over double draw-bridges. The deep moats and solid

230 MALTA.

walls seemed sufficient guarantees of the security of the place.
Yet Vittoriosa boasts the citadel of St Angelo, which, when
beleagured by the Turks, bade defiance to the fiercest of their
assaults. Tlie castle is itself separated from the main portion of
the peninsula by a wet fosse. The central part of the fortress,

— the same which came originally into the hands of the knights,

— is girdled with bastions and ramparts, and within the circuit
of the latter the requisite arsenals, storehouses and cisterns are
included ; so that, alone, St Angelo might withstand a formidable
investment directed by the skill of modern arms.

Vittoriosa was formerly the residence of the Inquisitor General.
All the other foreign ministers had palaces at La Valetta, but
the jealousy of the Order would not permit the representative,
or rather this tool, of the Pope to be accommodated in the
capital. It was only during the reign of the last Grand Master
that the interdict was even suspended.

The inquisitorial palace is now made use of for barracks by
the officers and men in this part of the garrison. I was desirous
of exploring the dungeons, but found them closed up.

The inhabitants of Burmola and Vittoriosa are quite as super-
stitious as their neighbours of the metropolis. I observed shrines
at the corners of various streets. People would pass them
uncovered, or with the form of signing the cross. Indulgences
were also notified over the doors of several churches, where, in
consideration of a trifling sum and the penance of a few Aves
and Paters, dispensations might be procured for sins during
forty days.

On my return to Valetta, I found the streets alive with the
bustle and sports of Carnival. It was an anticipation of the
festival, as the season, which lasts three days, does not properly
commence before tomorrow. This afternoon the streets have
been filling with drolls, buffoons, and gazers, but the amuse-
ments seemed very stupid.

During the sports a circumstance occurred, worth noting on
the score of incongruity. While in one street, (Strada Vescovo,)
a set of mountebanks were dancing about a fantastic stand to

CARNIVAL.

231

the sound of bass drums and tambourines, and the mob were
laughing at their uncouth dresses and antics, another of those
ecclesiastical processions which I have described, bearing the
consolations of the church to a dying mortal, was passing along
the adjacent street, (Strada Stretta.) The priests moved with
the usual accompaniments of bell and banner, chants and
lights, but the populace took no notice of the solemnity ; and as
if the carnival had put them out of the reach of their spiritual
fathers, they pursued their fooleries without a moment's cessation.

Feb. 26. — This is the second great day of the Carnival, but
a storm has this morning set in, which is likely to mar very
seriously, if not extinguish, its festivities. Many that were
determined to make fools of themselves, will be disappointed for
one day at least of that gratification.

And what is the Carnival ? A popish festival borrowed from
the usages of old paganism. The heathens had the self-same
thing. In the Bacchanalia of the Romans and the Dionysia of
the Athenians, we find the prototypes of the modern carnival.

Anciently in those celebrations, masks were worn ; disguises
of different kinds were assumed ; the sexes exchanged their
distinctive apparel ; cymbals were played and horns blown in
the streets ; goats and asses, ridiculously caparisoned, were led
about. The population of a city seemed smitten with madness,
and displayed publicly their follies. Some assumed one cha-
racter, some another, and some — like themselves — no cha-
racter at all.

How do things compare in modern times ? Yesterday, an
opportunity was given of satisfactorily judging. The weather,
though none of the brightest, offered no material impediment.
The country people crowded into town, and license was given
to every species of folly. It was Sunday ; and what a dese-
cration of that season of rest ! In the press I noticed some
genuine Mahometans from Barbary and the Levant, gazing with
looks of wonder on the confused spectacle. And what must
they have thought of the piety of Christians, judged by their
actions on the day expressly set apart as the Christian's Sabbath.?*

232 MALTA.

It is difficult to describe the transactions witnessed; and minute-
ness, if attempted, would be a waste of time and toil. A few
things, hastily noted, are all I shall offer.

The Royal Way or Strada Reale, answering in miniature to
the Toledo of Naples and the Corso of Rome, was the princi-
pal scene of the hurly-burly. At two P. M., this street began
to fill, and a throng gathered in Palace Square connecting with
it, just in front of my windows. Harlequins and buffoons of
all sorts were moving to and fro, and playing their frolics. Of
the masks, some were tricked out in parti-coloured attire
in imitation of knaves of cards, some like clowns, some like
satyrs and zanies, some like Africans, and some like Turks.
Females I saw in naval, military and men's fancy dresses.
Young blades metamorphosed themselves into old ones ; and
old simpletons masked and dressed to appear like young ones.
Some walked about in the court habiliments of Louis the Four-
teenth's time. Even children mimicked the folly of their seniors.
One boy I noticed dressed hke a highland chief, with tartans, kilt,
bonnet and plume ; another was led about clad like a litde
Turk with turban, full trowsers and ataghan. Here and there .
a gig was sported, and the drivers were disguised for the purpose
of caricaturing the dandyism of an English ' swell.' One man
drove an open chair, and by his side was seated a figure equipped
like a dashing belle. The features when seen, proved to be
those of an old seaman. His weather-beaten visage was in
grotesque contrast with the gaiety of his feminine apparel.

Meanwhile, a long line of caleches was passing in constant
succession along the principal street, proceeding from Porta
Reale toward St Elmo, then deviating by a cross street into a
parallel avenue, and returning to the western rampart,' to
descend again the main thoroughfare and circulate as before.
These were filled with well dressed females and children of the
better families. Some of the ladies were masked, and as they
passed they would salute with a handful of sugarplums such of
their friends as they recognised in the crowd.

CARNIVAL. 233

But by far the greater part of the multitude was composed,
as usual, of spectators; and the motley dresses and strange looks
of such a variety of human beings, even contemplated in 'pro-
pria, persona, were scarcely less curious than the characters in
actual travesty. Army and navy officers, sailors and soldiers,
priests and citizens, — men, women, and children, — old and
young, — rich and poor, — Tunisians and Europeans, — people
of all languages, costumes and hues, were promiscuously blended.
There was the flowing beard, the mustachioed upper lip, the
smooth face, the shorn head, — the round hat, the cocked or
three-cornered, the chapeau de bras, the turban, — the common
cap, of leathern, or woollen, seal or oil-cloth, — the jockey, the
helmet, the skull-cap, the cowl, the bonnet, the vail, the faldetta,
— what a scene ! Hogarth might have painted it ; but even
Hogarth could have given no adequate notion of it by de-
scription.

The officers not being allowed to mask, amused themselves
with pelting the rabble with sugarplums, which they carried
in large silk bags. The sport consisted in seeing the scrambling
they occasioned. When a handful was thrown in, a dozen or
two of ragged fellows, men and boys, would strive for the sweet-
meats, sometimes tumbling into a heap, eagerly clutching at
them — hke chickens pecking kernels of corn, — and snapping at
one another. The balconies were filled with spectators of both
sexes, or rather with actors, for they too scattered showers of
sugarplums on the crowd below, and the salute would be often
returned with full interest. For it is deemed fair game in this
species of merriment to fling a volley of such missiles directly
in the face of a friend if a chance can be got, and if they pro-
duce a smarting, there is no complaining. An officer pointed
out to me a baron, one of the highest in rank among the native
Maltese, a man about sixty years of age, who was particularly
active in this silly amusement. Stalls and tables were at hand,
with boxes piled with sugarplums, where the combatants in the
strife might supply themselves with ammunition as their stock
30

234 MALTA,

failed ; and the venders added to the uproar by their vociferous
cries.

Between the hours of four and five, a shower of rain fell, and
it poured a few minutes in good earnest. It interfered very
litde, however, with the pranks and follies abroad. Many of the
women remained in the streets, or only sought a temporary shel-
ter under the facade of the governor's palace.

Add to these scenes a few other matters, — numerous shops
open, such as masquers', jewellers', druggists', bakers' and
pastry cooks', — flower stalls dispersed in places, — and traffic
going on as amusements might permit, — and some notion
may be obtained of the manner of the Sunday's celebration in
La Valetta.

In one part of the crowd I remarked some monkeys — calling
themselves men — with hats fantastically set off with flower
bands, dancing to the sound of noisy instruments about a couple of
poles, which were trimmed with festoons of green. The shows
terminated with a masked ball at the theatre. It commenced
at eight, P. M., and did not close, as I am informed, before half
past two this morning. A ball is the invariable finale of each
of the three days of carnival, and the facilities it affords to in-
trigues and gross licentiousness may be readily imagined.

I looked yesterday into several churches, to see if the order
of things in them was more encouraging than the doings without.
In St John's there were few worshippers, but the company of
priests was great. Thirty or forty were engaged in chanting a
service in the worst nasal drawl. Some dozens of huge tapers
were blazing about the high altar ; and when 1 add that the
church looked grand, as it ever does, I have said all. The at-
tendance at the Franciscan was smaller. If the people could
read a Ladn inscription on the porch of the church, and if their
faith were proportionate to their pretensions, the concourse of
devotees might be greater. The inscription records a grant
from the Pope, made in 1684, allowing the church to dispense
from the spiritual treasury indulgence ' peradmodum,' to all who

VOTIVE GIFTS. 235

should present their prayers and votive offerings before the altar
of St Anthony of Padua erected therein. In the church of the
Augustinians, over a chapel in the side aisle, I have read a
scroll of another sort, of which the following is a transcript :

' In honorem Dei-parag Virginis ; domus
In qud Verbum caro factum est :' —

the English of which is, — ' In honour of the Virgin, mother of
God ; the tabernacle in which the Word was made flesh.'

There is a church in Valetta, I think it is St Dominic's, in a
part of which a large collection of votive pictures and images
may be seen. They are the offerings of persons cured of divers
diseases, or healed of bruises, or rescued from perils, such as falls,
fires and shipwrecks ; and many were dedicated in conse-
quence of express vows in sickness and danger. If a poor man
was in jeopardy of drowning and chanced to be delivered, the
scene is coarsely painted on a board, often no better than a tav-
ern sign-board, and given to be hung near the altar of the saint
whose help was invoked in the hour of need. If a leg should
be cured of a serious hurt, a waxen image of the part affected
is gratefully dedicated ; and even pictures of women recovered
from the pains of an accouchement are sometimes consecrated.
In the church to which I allude, besides an assortment of legs,
arms, eyes and noses, tied up with ribbons, and some of them
set off with artificial flowers, I saw a pair of human mammae
large as life. And within a glass case hard by there was an
image of something, which, if it were not a matrix, it would be
difficult to divine what it was. Sometimes valuable pictures
are presented ; and, very rarely, ofierings are made of the objects
in silver or gold. These, no doubt, are gladly received by the
priests ; but the other articles they regard as pious trumpery,
which nevertheless they are obliged to tolerate and keep.

Dr Middleton, in his masterly Letter from Rome, has traced
the origin of these donaria to the superstitious usages of ancient
Paganism. Passages in the classics bear him out abundantly.
Livy represents the temples of jEsculapius to have been par-
ticularly rich in such gifts, — ' the price and pay,' as he says.

236 MALTA.

* for those cures which the god had wrought for the sick.'
Tibullus, also, invoking in distress the interference of Isis, ex-
claims,

' Nunc, dea, nunc succure mihi : nam posse mederi
Picta docet templis multa tabella tuis ; ' —

in other words,

Now, goddess, aid ; for thou canst help bestow,
As many pictures in thy temple show.

Juvenal says of this fictitious divinity, that the painters of Rome
obtained their livelihood out of her in his times 5 — ' Pictores
quis nescit ab Iside pasci ? ' And Middleton's sneer has some
truth in it, that the deified Virgin has succeeded in supplanting
the goddess Isis, and that of all the offerings presented to saints,

* she is sure to carry away the greatest share.'

' As once to Isis, now it may be said
That painters to the Virgin owe their bread.'

The storm, which was inclement in the morning,

has settled into a violent northeaster. It is the Grecco of the
Levant, but called in Malta a Gregale. A more interesdng
name is Euroclydon, for it was so denominated by the ancients;
and it is the same sort of tempest spoken of in Acts, which
caused the shipwreck of Paul. The rain poured last night in
torrents, but it was not till today that the wind rose with vehe-
mence.

The sea is breaking on these iron-bound shores with great
grandeur. Indeed, it was almost fearful to contemplate from
the roof of the house the power of the swelling, whitening waves,
and the magnificent comb of the surf, heaving and dashing upon
the rocks. An inward bound brig, driving under close reefs
and making up towards the harbour, added to the interest of the
scene. Ships, in the meanwhile lying in the harbour, were so
protected by their position that they rode as quietly as though
anchored in a pond.

Feb. 28. — The carnival terminated last night with feasting
and dancing. The theatre was open at an early hour, and
filled with masks and dominos. Night had stolen apace —

CLOSE OF THE CARNIVAL. 237

scarce a fragment of it was left — when the melee rushed forth,
and the jaded roysterers dispersed to their respective homes.

It is said that seasons of mirth flit rapidly away. But last
night the hours must have been long, or the hour-hands have
stopped, for midnight, which should have closed the merriment,
did not arrive, — at least so it would seem, — till just ere the
morning prime. This was very fortunate to the actors in the
sports, for at midnight Carnival must end; and Lent, — that
tedious Lent — season of fasting, moping and gloom, — imme-
diately begins.

Seriously ; — Carnival is done, — much to my relief and that
of all sober souls. Although some hours were borrowed from an
interdicted part of the night, to carry on the festivities, (to
the annoyance of peaceful slumberers,) the noise and tumult
are at length over, and a more sombre season has set in.

The long fast which commences today, will continue till the
festival of Easter. For the next six and forty days, the devout
Catholic must eschew, (not chew,) all meats, and dread them as
deadly poisons. He must confine himself to simpler diet, much
to his own chagrin, and the chagrin of the tribe of butchers, but
greatly to the satisfaction of the class of fishmongers.

The Gregale abated its vehemence yesterday noon. The
clouds broke away in part, and the sky gradually brightened.
So propitious a change was welcomed by the lovers of farce,
and the absurdities of Carnival were renewed with eagerness.
It seemed in the afternoon as if all Malta had run mad, and
the pranks of some of the masqueraders would have shamed
Punch or Harlequin. But the feeling in my mind constantly
was, — what childishness, what stupidity ! — I trust I am no
cynic. It is refreshing to see a whole populace indulging in
innocent mirth ; and as for rational amusements, not only can I
witness them with pleasure in others, but can enjoy them myself
with as keen a zest as my fellows. But to see men assume the
character of monkeys, and discard every restraint of reason and
decorum, — to see the contagion infecting all classes, ranks and
extravagances which would have almost

238

MALTA.

scandalized the orgies of ancient Bacchanalians, and these kept
up with sleepless activity for three, nay, four long days, — it is
pitiable, it is sickening, it is deplorable.

The doings were so similar to those of the first day of the
Carnival that it is not necessary to review them. To walk the
streets was to be exposed to the usual sugarplum volleys
and to have one's collar and bosom filled with the showering
pellets, — to be jostled in the eddying crowds of zanies and
spectators, heedless of mutual annoyances, — and occasionally
tapped on the shoulder by some little vixen in petticoats begging
for the boon of sweetmeats from the neighbouring stalls. One
dark-eyed Maltese the better to plead her suit, unmasked and
displayed her wooing features, not doubting that the eloquence
of these and the witchery of a smile would assuredly prevail
with 'il signor forestiero.'

The incongruity of an ecclesiastical procession parading the
streets amid the uproar of the popular sports, was mentioned in
my minutes of Sunday. But yesterday an incident occurred of
more solemn and striking contrast. During the extravagances
of the occasion, a soldier was carried out to be buried. A de-
tachment of military accompanied his remains to their final
home, moving with arms reversed and muffled drums and fifes,
playing the melancholy strains of Pleyel's Hymn and the Dead
March in Saul. The mob that recked nothing of the priests,
was obliged to respect the soldiery. There was a momentary
pause in the din and whirl of merriment. The giddy tumult
was hushed, and the image of death cast a shadow on the
amusements and frivolities of the crowd, as the mournful pro-
cession passed on to the place of the soldier's grave.

I missed the house-servant last evening who usually waits on
me, and supposed he had gone to eat out with his comrades
the season of feasting and jollity. — ' And so. Carlo, you were at
some carousal, last night, I suppose ? ' — said I, when he entered
my chamber this morning. ' Me ! no, Signor j — me sleep last
night ; — me drink more than better, and me go to sleep ' — he
replied in his broken English, touching his forehead at the same

TRAGIC TALE.

239

time with his finger. It was ingenuously spoken, and Vicary said
such 3. faux pas must be overlooked this once, as the poor fellow
in the main was a faithful and orderly servant, and indeed a bet-
ter one in his station I have never known. He was no worse off
I dare say than half of the Maltese. But how demoralizing
must be the festival which turns rational beings into brutes that
want ' discourse of reason.'

As a sequel to this vile farce, it is an unfailing practice for all
who have participated in it to go on the ensuing Sunday to Casal
Zahbah, a village across the bay beyond Burmola, in order to
make confession to priests there in attendance, and to receive
absolution. It is said that the harbour then swarms with boats
freighted with pseudo-penitents bound in that direction.

Injustice to the better sort of the Catholic clergy, for abetter
sort there is, I am bound to say, that they do not encourage the
buffooneries of the carnival. How numerous the class of ex-
ceptions may be I know not, but I feel safe in saying it cannot
be large. I saw many ecclesiastics mixed up with the rabble,
— priests of divers ages from the stripling to the gray-beard, —
and they looked complacently on the fooleries of actors, those
apes in the shape of men.

By a mysterious fatality the most benevolent intentions are
sometimes frustrated, nay productive of positive detriment. A
memorable instance in point occurred here four years ago.

Some Capuchin friars sensible of the evils of carnival, and
especially of the pernicious influences it exerts on the minds of
children, humanely devised a method to withdraw them from the
spectacle. They promised such boys as would leave the city
each day of the festival, and repair to a place selected in the
suburbs and stay there till evening, that at night they should
severally be rewarded with a loaf of bread and an orange.
About three hundred were induced to accept the invitation and
to the suburbs they went. The day, — it was the first of the
carnival and doubtless a weary day to their impatient spirits,
— at length declined, and evening drew on. By an unfortu-

240 MALTA.

nate neglect they were not sent for in proper season, and night
had closed in when they reached La Valetta.

The boys were conducted to the Capuchin convent, and a
monk discoursed to them awhile in the hall. It was arranged
that whilst the harangue was proceeding, the children should
pass in file to a table loaded with the promised gifts, each to re-
ceive his loaf and orange, and then retire through a different
passage from diat by which they came in. Beyond the hall
there was a range of apartments, connecting with a long corridor
which terminated with a broad flight of stone steps leading down
to the street. The door at the bottom of the steps opened in-
wards, and by , a draught of wind or some other cause it had
shut to. The night was gusty and black. A lamp had been
placed in the passage, but the light was accidentally blown out.
These circumstances had not been attended to through some
unaccountable remissness.

The foremost boys, a number of them being dismissed at
once, ignorant of the descent at the end of the gallery, ran
through the passage and were precipitated down the stairs against
the door. Another and another succeeded ; and as they were
hastened from the hall with their presents, to give place to new
expectants, and as the pass along the corridor was the only outlet
for all, they fell rapidly one upon another. No inmates of the
convent being near, nor the janitor at hand, the cries of the little
sufferers were for some time unheeded. And as the pile of
bodies thickened, the sounds of distress from those who first
fell, were stilled by suffocation.

Some passengers, without, were startled by the cries and
screams of the children ; and surmising the cause, though
little aware how fatal it was to prove, one of them entered the
hall where the pious father was continuing his exhortations and
gave the alarm. The priest, indignant at the interruption,
bade the informant. Be silent, and never presume to lift his
voice when the word of God was propounded. Two or three
minutes were lost by such ill-timed heedlessness.

TRAGIC TALE. 241

The alarm spreading, and it being ascertained what the diffi-
culty really was, the door was broken through from the street
and the heap of bruised, dying and suffocated bodies was tum-
bled upon the pavement. It was found that a number were
entirely lifeless. These, with the other mangled bodies, were
put on litters and borne to a hospital. The tidings were quickly
noised. Mothers and other near kindred, whose children
or relatives were among the number sent into the country,
rushed amid the throng of carriers and attendants, each calling
on some dear name in an agony of doubt and fear ; and when
no familiar voice was returned, — no response that told ' here
I am,' — they were seen bending in all the bitterness of despair
over the dead bodies that lay stretched on the mournful biers.
A gentleman who lived in Strada Mercanti, through which the
concourse passed, assured me that the scene was indescribably
harrowing.

All the surgeons of the city and neighbourhood were imme-
diately summoned. A guard was stationed to repel the crowd
of mere curious gazers ; and every method was resorted to,
which human skill could suggest, for the purpose of resuscitating
the bodies of the children. But the number which had been
completely suffocated, or who died from wounds, fractures,
and other causes, was relatively very great. I have not ascer-
tained it exactly and have heard it variously stated. But none
of the estimates have fallen short of forty.

The next day the dead were carried in funeral cars to a
common place of burial, and interred together as decently as
circumstances would permit. It was found that many of the
boys were dreadfully lacerated, not merely by the bruises of
their falls, but by the teeth, nails, and through the violent strug-
gles of one another, in their desperate and unavailing efforts to.
extricate themselves from the accumulated press. •

The excitement of the populace against the whole Capuchin

fraternity was terrible. The fathers and friars of the monastic

house where the catastrophe happened, were obliged to retire

for safety to the country, till the popular ferment had in some

242 MALTA.

measure subsided. Government also made inquest into the
causes of this fatal occurrence. The result, of course, was an
acquittal of the Capuchins from all designed blame, but not from
censurable inattention and oversight.

As usual, the issue of the plan of benevolence, however praise-
worthy in conception, was sufficient to bring the scheme itself
into disrepute. Accordingly, children are now suffered to sport
their favorite ' rough and tumble,' and scramble for sugar-plums
as merrily and recklessly as aforetime.

March 1. — In the course of the morning I called on a
valued friend, and as the weather was delightful, it was proposed
to ascend to the roof and enjoy there the pleasures of air and
exercise, together with the fine prospects which spread around.
We walked to and fro for an hour, in discursive conversation,
but chiefly on moral themes and the ' signs of the times.'

There was much in the scenes before us to elevate and im-
press the mind. When we looked to the face of nature, espe-
cially the broad and majestic deep, stretching far to the north
and west, reposing in beauty and dappled with sails of snowy
whiteness ; — when, turning an eye towards Sicily, we traced on
the distant horizon the faint form of that ever burning but never
consuming beacon, — Mount JEtna, — we naturally spoke of
the greatness of nature's Architect, in the survey of the gran-
deur of nature's works. We looked down on the swarms of
wretched human beings in the streets of this proud old city, and
were led to descant on the misery of man, and vice its prolific
source. A question was started, which I have found myself
frequently revolving, — What has been the measure of good to
the natives of this spot, — the common people more particularly,
— produced by the teaching of Christianity ? My friend, who
to acuteness of observation has united favorable opportunities of
judgment, acknowledged, that he had found the influences and
sanctions of sound religion to possess scarce the shadow of a hold
on the generality of the populace ; that, aside from predominant
ignorance, a general licentiousness, and that dishonour of the
Christian Sabbath which a Catholic, conscientiously perhaps.

CONTEMPLATIONS. 243

would account very difTerently from a Protestant, (regarding the
season not as a holy but a holi-day,) — aside from these things,
he was constrained to testify that fraud, falsehood and profane-
ness, are vices fearfully prevalent in the bulk of die people ; and
as for those who might be called devout, — that is, persons
attached in heart to Popery, and observant of its forms, — little
could be inferred from their conduct, whatever be their avowals,
that theirs is a vital piety. ^^

It was the opinion of this careful observer, that the population
of Malta, in a religious point of view, might be divided into three
classes ; first, the common people, who blindly cleave to what
the church prescribes, and what the priesthood interprets ; next,
the better informed of the laity, who, aware of the absurdities
of Popery, and conversant with the writings of French and other
deists, are sceptics in heart and virtual disbelievers of all religion ;
and thirdly, ecclesiastics, (monks, priests and others,) who are
personally interested in keeping up the present system of things,
retaining the people in slavish ignorance, wringing from them
all their disposable substance, crying up the authority and mys-
teries of the church, and acting on the principle of the Ephesian
shrinemakers, whose ' craft ' was the source of their ' wealth.'
Arguing from such premises, the minds of the majority of these
classes would seem equally unimpressible by a purer faith, un-
less through preternatural means.

I have given the opinions and reasoning of my friend, but 1
cannot but hope that the picture is too deeply shaded. Nothing
can be more fallacious than to argue against the truth of religious
systems from the conduct of their nominal disciples. Christian-
ity, in its most purified forms, has failed in hallowing the lives
and hearts of all of its professed subjects ; but who therefore
would reason that Christianity itself is not divine } That some
forms of religion are better than others, — more favourable to
virtue, more conducive to the social good of mankind, — no one
pretends to doubt ; and that a more pernicious scheme could be
projected, whether in theory or influence, generally consid-
ered, than the Catholic, it would be difficult to imagine. Still,

244 MALTA.

Christianity, however adulterated, cannot have totally failed
in diffusing a salutary leaven of some sort even here. My
own personal observations, very likely, may be partial, being
drawn from the better specimens ; and certainly I am bound
to cherish towards the families and individuals I have best
known, only respect, because with such a sentiment they have
generally inspired me. The woful ignorance of the populace
appears to be the immediate cause of their demoralized condi-
tion, in combination with that extreme poverty which is too
often the incentive to crime, and the facilities they all possess of
procuring dispensations for sins. Enlighten the people ; give
them employment and bread ; break the yoke of their priests ;
teach them their moral freedom and their personal responsible-
ness ; prove to them that the remission of sins lies not with fal-
lible men, but is the prerogative of God's mercy alone, — and
the elements of the best toned character would be at once de-
veloped among them, equal, certainly, to what can be found
in any other Christian community.

At any rate, and assuming at present the worst in the moral
condition of the inhabitants of this and the adjacent lands, — .
yet in speculating on their prospects, an augury of good may be
drawn from an analogy in the natural w^orld. As the thickest
darkness often precedes the breaking of morning, so this moral
gloom may offer the presage of near and brightening dawn.
The daystar of hope is already on the horizon. There is a
growing intelligence characteristic of the age. Knowledge is
beginning to radiate on every hand, — that knowledge which is
the guide to virtue and happiness, as well as to social improve-
ment, elevation and power.

By whatever trains the process may be accomplished, it is my
full belief that ere many years shall have gone by, there will be
a mighty upturning, — a momentous revolution — both in the
religious and the political condition of the surrounding nations.
It cannot be that the present unnatural and iniquitous order of
things will be perpetual. Hoary tyranny, whether over the
bodies, the minds, or the souls of men, must and will come to an

HOSPITALS — FOUNDLING. 24 5

end. ' Babylon will fall.' And then may ' Jerusalem which is
from above and free ' arise from the dust and put off her gar-
ments of mourning, and deck herself in raiment of celestial
purity, and become the joy and praise of the whole earth \

The afternoon I devoted chiefly to an inspection of hospitals
and beneficent institutions. As my attention had been previously
directed to some of them, I shall throw together in this place
my notes upon them all.

Malta formerly possessed one of the noblest charitable insti-
tutions in the world. The knights opened a vast hospital, where in
the flourishing days of the Order, they received the sick of every
clime who were cast upon their benevolence. By the style of
their foundation they were Hospitallers and they maintained their
claims to the appellation till their decline and fall. Personal
attendance upon the diseased was the duty of all, and they ful-
filled it by waiting in rotation on their patients and administering
to their necessities. It was a fact unexampled in institutions of
the kind, that every article of diet was served to the sick on
silver plate. Once a year, in token of humihation, the knights
washed the feet of the poor.

The hospital now devoted to the indigent sick, is limited in
its means of relief. The inmates only average about one hun-
dred. But they are well provided for, being humanely and
skilfully treated, and neatness and order prevail in the establish-
ment. It has been built up by the English.

There is also in Malta a Foundling Institution. But I am not
sure that the good it produces more than countervails the evil
which it encourages, if it does not create. Foundling Institu-
tions frequently become lures to the promiscuous commerce of
the sexes. I honour the benevolent motives of their projectors
and patrons ; but I cannot shut my eyes to the abuses of such
philanthropy. If the opening of receptacles for illegitimate
children may in some instances prevent infanticide, in many more
it tempts to that licentiousness which entails upon the commu-
nity a progeny of pitiable outcasts ; and in the case of mothers, it
leads too often to confirmed habits of shamelessness and impu-

246 MALTA

rity. An institution of another sort is needed in Malta, namely,
a Magdalen Asylum. Notwithstanding the irregularities which
prevail between the sexes, and the many deluded females who,
I doubt not, would fain retrace their steps to the paths of virtue,
or more properly the paths of penitence, there is here no chari-
table retreat, no house of refuge, for such miserables.

The late Marquis of Hastings was the founder of an excel-
lent institution, located just outside of the city, at Florian. It is
calledjhe House of Industry. It was established for the pur-
pose of giving employment and subsistence to a portion of the
poor taken from the streets. The institution has been in opera-
tion two years, and it has been found expedient within that time
to modify considerably the original plan.

At first, idlers and paupers, as many as could be received,
were gathered in without discrimination. But the laziness of the
major part of them was found too inveterate to be overcome.
They were worse than drones in the institution, and they sighed
for the freedom of the streets, though bought at the penalty of
the most precarious livelihood in dirt and rags. The plan nex
adopted and which is still prosecuted, was to admit, not common
mendicants, but the needy members of reduced families and
especially poor orphans. The females are taught to braid straw
and make it into bonnets, to sew, spin and weave, to work laces
and ornamental cotton trimmings. The boys are employed in
making mats and straw hats, picking raw cotton, and in other suit-
able occupations. The cotton of the island though a valuable
staple for durability, has a brownish shade, and the stuffs wrought
from it in this institution have a coarse and dingy look. The
specimens of straw fabric which I saw, were very neat. They
are made on the plan of the Framingham manufacture in Mas-
sachusetts ; the mode having been taught the present overseer
of the department, by an American lady, the late excellent
Mrs T .

Recent enlargements of the House of Industry give accommo-
dations to two hundred and eightysix poor, instead of one hun-
dred, the number with which it went into operation. The

HOUSE OF INDUSTRY — ALMSHOUSE. 247

building is provided with courts, fountains and corridors, and is
kept perfectly neat. It has a chapel wherein mass is celebra-
ted every morning. The institution does not now support itself,
but it probably will. The board of the poor, for each, is four
pence sterling a day, or about twentyseven Spanish dollars
yearly. They have abundance of food, viz. a pound and a half
of bread, three ounces of maccaroon, and an allowance of hard
peas, beans, or something tantamount for soup, per diem.
They are roused in the morning at ' gun-fire,' dine at half past
eleven, and go to bed at dusk. Twenty yards of cotton cloth
wrought in one loom, are considered a good day's task for
a single hand. J saw a few very old persons in the establish-
ment ; one, still capable of working, is nearly a hundred years
of age. Longevity is not unusual in the island, and it is ascri-
bable to habits of abstemiousness and hard labour. — Contrasted
with the aged, there was an interesting group of children, whom
I saw in an apartment by themselves, all girls, forty or more in
number. They were seated on mats, each with a little spinning-
wheel before her, neatly painted, which they were plying very
busily. I was struck with their clean and cheerful appearance.
Their sparkling black eyes were beaming with contentment.

Applications for admission must be made on certain days, to
a committee of managers called a Board of Controul. The
claims of the poor are then investigated, and if deemed sufficient,
the candidates are received on trial. A short time ago, sixteen
young and middle-aged females suddenly quitted the House>
taking French leave. They complained of the irksomeness of the
confinement, and their constant employment. The superintend-
ent is confident that ,they will soon return and seek admission
into the institution again, and thought it was well that they should
learn experimentally, by contrast, the benefits of a residence
here. — There are from fifteen to eighteen attendants and sub-
overseers attached to the establishment.

Not far from the House of Industry is another Asylum for
the poor, an elder institution, much on the plan of the old Boston
Almshouse. It differs from die House of Industry in being a

248 MALTA.

public establishment, instead of a voluntary foundation by indi-
viduals. The poor, as in the other retreat, are mostly em-
ployed. The exceptions are the very aged and the infirm.
The number of beneficiaries is six hundred.

Attached to this building is a department for the Insane.
Thirty patients are on the present list. I conversed with one
who was pointed out as an object of peculiar sympathy. He
was a gentleman of good family, and formerly a lawyer of re-
spectability. His appearance and address were very much in
his favour ; and in the course of conversation I could detect
nothing which marked an aberration of Intellect. But, alas, it
was only a short, lucid interval. He complained bitterly of his
confinement, and earnestly requested that a representation might
be made of his cruel duress in order to his liberation.

But a more affecting case of insanity was that of an English-
man. He had been master of a merchant vessel, and married
a woman on whom he doated. Two children were the fruit of
their union. He went on a voyage to Alexandria, was absent
some time, and on his return had cause to suspect his wife of
unfaithfulness. His fears were confirmed by evidence not to be
mistaken. An infant was born, of which he could not be the
father. His jealousy and grief combined to unsettle his reason.
At length, his madness became fixed and hopeless, and it was
necessary to confine him here. The property of the unhappy
man, in consequence of his inability to look after it, has been
mostly dissipated. Even his children have been obliged to take
up their abode in this house of woe. His madness seems more
that of abstraction and deep preying melancholy, than a raving
insanity. I was informed that the wife died not long since, a
victim to remorse and a broken heart.

The Foundling Hospital, already spoken of, is another branch
of the same great Asylum for the poor. In commenting on the
' morale ' of such an institution, I omitted to remark on the man-
agement of this established in Malta. — Infants are left in a
basket which is statedly kept at the outer gate of the hospital.
Any mother may deposit her babe in it, and no questions are

MONTE DI PIETA-CONSERVATORIO. 249

asked. A bell is rung to give notice, and a turn of the wheel
introduces the forlorn little being to its stranger protectors. I
saw three poor outcasts which had been received very recently.
They were in the charge of a single nurse. During the last
month, eight foundlings had been left at the gate. The infants
are all nourished on goat's milk. I was told that the average
mortality among them is great, but the exact proportion I did
not learn.

Malta has an institution called Monte di Pieta, a sort of
public pawn-broker's shop, on an extensive scale and under
government patronage. It is managed by respectable and re-
sponsible commissioners. The design is to accommodate the
poor with ready money advanced on certain deposites, such as
clothing, furniture, and persona] ornaments. Articles of dress,
if not redeemed in eighteen months, are sold at auction ; jewels
are suffered to remain three years before a sale. Should the
price they bring exceed the sum advanced on the deposite, the
balance is paid over to the original possessors. The Maltese,
especially the females, are much attached to their ornaments,
which frequently descend through several generations. In this
respect they resemble our North American Indians. It is not
uncommon to find a woman wretchedly poor in other respects,
possessed of jewels of considerable value. When they are com-
pelled to pledge them, they generally contrive^ by some means,
to redeem them before the time of forfeiture comes round.

At Burmola, there is a singular establishment deserving notice.
It is called a Conservatorio. It is a retreat for certain aged people
disgusted with the world ; but it is chiefly remarkable as a place
of incarceration, likewise, where the men of the world may shut
up their female relatives. Husbands may imprison their wives
there, and parents their children, on pretexts which in better regu-
lated communities would not often be tolerated. It is a pity that
in Malta there is not a place where women may shut up the men.
They would form, I am sure, quite the larger class. But per-
haps the number of offenders would defeat such a plan, or re-
quire a substitute something on the ground of Swift's scheme
32

250 MALTA.

for Lunatics, who proposed a hospital for secluding the few truly
sane, and letting the multitude of the mad continue to go at
large.

The Conservatorio differs from a nunnery in the circumstance,
that confinement in its walls is not necessarily perpetual. A
parent who places his daughter there, sometimes purposes the
residence to be no longer than till he can procure for her a
husband, or some reputable situation in life. Meanwhile, his
object is to keep her out of harm's way. This is not altogether
unwise ; but the motives of husbands may be piques, jealousies,
(with or without reason,) and even a desire sometimes to carry
on a criminal ' liaison ' without inteference from the presence
of a wife.

The maidens of Malta are marriageable very early. Girlhood
in America is womanhood here. They become wives frequently
at twelve, thirteen and fourteen years of age, and some have
been wedded even earlier. Usually, the selection of husbands
is not left to their discretion. A lady of my acquaintance lately
consented to take into her family a Maltese girl not quite fourteen
years old, whom, if she proved worthy, she meant to keep for
some years or bring up as we call it. But the lass it seems had
been already brought up. She had not been with her mistress
above a month, when she told her that she was going to leave
and be married. The lady asked her who was to be her hus-
band ? The reply was, ' She didn't know ; — her mother had
made the match, and she doubted not it was a good one. Besides,
it was so pretty a thing to be married ! ' Expostulation was in
vain. The girl left an excellent place and is now a wife.

From inquiries which I have made, I am satisfied that a con-
siderable proportion of the inmates of nunneries are placed there
by coercion, more or less direct. Add to these, such who enter
them for the sake of a home and subsistence, or from being
crossed in love, or soured with the world from other causes, and
the number of those who take the veil from motives of real piety
is small. I was assured by a Maltese gentleman, himself
a protestant, that a young lady, his cousin, was not long ago

vows — MORALS. 251

forced to enter a convent as a novice. Her parents were rigid
Catholics. The lady by some means escaped before the expi-
ration of the year, but her retreat was discovered. She was
seized and closely confined, till her consent was extorted to
renounce the world, and to take upon her the final and indisso-
luble vows of a nun.

Christianity approves itself to sound reason, by inculcating
principles in strict coincidence with the laws and dictates of
nature. In place of forbidding, it authorizes, and seeks to
elevate and hallow the natural affections. The charities of home
and kindred, and the relation of husbands and wives, of parents
and children it directly countenances. But popery sets itself
in array against such wise institutions. It requires, or at least,
it invites a numerous class of men and women to be separated
from society, and to be immured for life in gloomy cloisters.
The avowed pretext is, to trim there the lamp of religion. But
a sickly taper it must be at the best. Under the semblance of
purity, licentiousness is often masked. Even if the letter of
monastic vows be not broken, and sexual intercourse be scru-
pulously barred, pollution may reign in the thoughts and the evil
be only driven in. An uncorrupt body and a corrupt soul, are
not the strangest alliance in nature. The confession of Rosseau,
(no religionist I grant,) may apply to many a monk and nun, —
who says of himself at a certain period of life, that ' he had lost
his purity,' though he had retained ' son pucelage.'

Lord Charleraont, who visited Malta during the Grand Mas-
tership of Emanuel Pinto, reflects severely on the morals of the
Maltese women, or rather the ladies then resident on the
island ; for many fair ones resorted hither, he acknowledges, to
find a market for their charms. He says with a sneer, that ' the
few virtuous women, natives of the island, are retired to Medina,
an inland city, where they live tolerably free from solicitation,
not so much on account of their distance, as because the Mal-
tese blood has too much of the Moor in it to be exceedingly
tempting.'

252 MALTA.

In justice to the grand-mothers of the present generation, it is
to be hoped that a better reason may be assigned for the security
of ' the hw,^ and that many more there were, too strongly in-
trenched in virtuous principles to admit a parley with libertinism.
In any event, his lordship's account reflects much more on the
character of an order of men who were sworn alike to celibacy
and continency. The earl, it should be remembered, visited
the knights in ' the piping times of peace,' when luxury had
begun to enervate their virtue and their valour ; and when in the
pursuits of pleasure they preferred to content themselves with
the martial glory, and to repose in the shade of the laurels, which
had been won by their gallant predecessors. His testimony goes
to confirm the uselessness of mere vows of chastity. ^^

The native Maltese, particularly the women, do not assimilate
easily to the English. They prefer their ancient manners and
usages. The females, high and low, are not more tenacious of
their hereditary costume, than of various other peculiarities. I
have heard of one native family, which is a case of exception ;
and on account of its imitation of foreign modes and fashions, it
is called the English family. Of course, it is more shunned
than courted by the other Maltese.

It used to be a saying among the old heads of Malta, that
women should never appear abroad but twice in their life-time,
namely, on the days of their marriage and burial. The proverb,
by the way, looks of Arabian origin, and very likely it was in-
troduced by the Saracens, the remote ancestors of the present
race of islanders. A French traveller in Malta, forty years ago,
remarked, that, so careful then were the native women to shun
observation abroad, they were in the custom of stealing out very
early to their prayers closely wrapped in their mantles. If so,
their habits have prodigiously changed ; for now they constitute
a large portion of the throng in the streets every hour of the
day. They never stir from home, it is true, without their black
mufflers, but they contrive to be seen, as well as to see, despite
of them. This curious covering, (called by themselves Ornilla,

FESTIVALS — ST GREGORY. 253

tliougli in Italian Faldetta,) the younger women wear not un-
gracefully ; and from looking upon it at first as very unbecoming,
I have come to regard it as almost ornamental.

Some customs mentioned of the Maltese by old authors,.!
find still prevalent. Married women stipulate with their hus-
bands on the day of espousals, that they shall be taken to the
three annual festivals of St John, Sts Peter-Paul, and St Gre-
gory. A condition like this, secured on such an occasion, seems
to indicate their having no great idea of the natural complaisance
of their bridegrooms. The country people are punctilious in
the exaction. St John's day is celebrated in Valetta, St Peter-
Paul's, at the Old City, and St Gregory's, at Casal Zeitun.

On the second of these festivals^ an unusual number of mar-
riages are celebrated, as the day is deemed peculiarly propitious
for such connexions. Girls who are married from the House
of Industry and other charitable asylums, avail themselves of
that occasion by special preference. A couple, whose union is
sanctioned by those institutions, receive a bridal gratuity in
money amounting to about ten dollars.

But the great fete is St Gregory's. The origin of the festival
is said to be this : — In the olden time, Malta was visited by a
plague of locusts which Came from Africa. They ravaged the
island, and were devouring every green thing, when an expe-
dient was hit upon to stop their devastations. This was no less
than to bring forth the image of St Gregory, that the sight of it
might awe and repel the wicked invaders. It was done. A
procession was decreed. The statue of the saint was produced.
There were prayers and there were chants, and the pious
scheme succeeded. The locusts not only bowed their sheaves
to Gregory's sheaf, but took wing, and left him and his votaries
in unmolested possession of every green blade which had escaped
their unholy voracity. So much for the legend.

The plain fact now-a-days is, that once every year a proces-
sion moves from Florian and the neighbouring burgh of Casal
Neuf to Casal Zeitun. It is composed of all the societies, the

254 MALTA.

canons of the Cathedral, and the bishop in state. It sets forth
with the cry of ' Misericorde ! ' thrice repeated by the whole peo-
ple. The effigy of St Gregory is borne high and resplendent
in the midst ; and the multitude do homage to his miraculous
powers of intercession. The procession takes place in the
morning ; the remainder of the day is devoted to the amusements
and festivities of a fete champetre. So great is the interest ex-
cited by the anniversary, that Valetta is almost emptied of its
population, and caleches let for five dollars on that day, which
at other times might be hired for as many carlins. ^^

CHAPTER IX,

MALTA.

University. — College of Priests. — Schools. — A Protestant Convert. — Reli-
gious Fanaticism. — Dr Pinkerton and the Bible Society. — Sinister Influence
of the Government 5 Causes. — British Colonies. — Fate of the Knights. — A
Motto. — Prospect of Mt. yEtna and the Shore of Sicily — Remarks on the
Phenomenon. — Penitential Pilgrimages. — A Parade. — Further Observa-
tions on the Appearance of ^tna. — Prayers and Masses for the Dead. — Air
of Malta. — The Author at Home. — Invasion of the Island by the French. —
Fleet of Buonaparte. — Comparison between Hompesch and La Valette. —
Siege by the English. — Sufferings of the Inhabitants. — Gen. Vaubois. —
Fall of Malta. — Parting Retrospect.

La Valetta ; March 2. — The means of education among
such a swarming population as this of Malta, are interesting ob-
jects of attention. I have forborne to speak of them until I was
possessed of the requisite materials of information ; and though
I have collected them all, in truth, they are very scanty.

Malta has one University. It is seated in the capital. For-
merly it was the college of the Jesuits ; but when that Order
was abolished by Ganganelli, (Clement Fourteenth,) in 1773, the
revenues of the College were taken possession of by the reign-
ing Grand Master, and applied to the purposes of Literature.
They were then estimated at twelve thousand scudes, or five
thousand dollars. The original plan of discipline, instruction
and oversight, adopted for the University, has been considerably
modified in the hands of the English, chiefly under the govern-
ment of Sir Thomas Maitland.

The present arrangement is this ; — first, there is a superviso-
ry body called the Council of Six, answering substantially to

256

MALTA.

the corporation of Harvard College. It consists of the Chief
Secretary of the Colonial Government, (Sir Frederick Han-
key,) the chief Judge, and an associate Justice of the island,
together with three Maltese barons. A Rector is the immediate
presiding officer of the University. Next come the professors,
twelve in number, in the several departments of Scholastic Di-
vinity, Divinity proper, Civil Law, Moral Philosophy, Natural
Philosophy, Navigation, Medicine, Surgery, Botany, Chemistry
and Pharmacy, Rhetoric, Drawing and Painting. Lastly, there
are four tutors, appointed to the several languages of English,
Italian, Latin and Arabic. No provision is made for instruction
in Greek, whether ancient or modern. There are three hund-
red students. They pay a Sicilian dollar monthly for tuition,
during term time. Vacation embraces two months of Summer.
The annual amount of fees, therefore, is only ten dollars. And
even this is remitted to the meritorious poor on a proper repre-
sentation of their straitened circumstances. The dollar nionth-
ly allows the student to attend, ad libitum^ the lectures of any of
the instructers. Nearly all of the pupils are natives of Malta,
though some come hither from Sicily and Greece. The Uni-
versity gives degrees in Divinity, Medicine, and Law. Four
years' attendance on the Lectures are requisite for securing the
college diplomas.

The value of the Divinity taught in the institution maybe judg-
ed from the fact, that the two Professors in Theology are monks,
one a Franciscan, the other an Augustinian. The technics of
the schools are the rules of instruction. The mind is trammel-
ed and hampered with the dialectics of Aristotle, and thought
and inquiry are made to run in the artificial directions of the
old iron rail-ways.

There is a college at Citta Vecchia. It gives no degrees and
can scarcely be called a Literary institution. Strictly, it is a
seminary of Catholic priests. It has considerable property in
lands which yield rents. The students, about one hundred in
number, live in commons, and pay six Maltese crowns a month, —
two dollars and eightyeight cents, — cheap enough.

SCHOOLS — A CONVERT. 257

A Lancastrian school is established at Valetta. It is called
the Normal. It was set up by subscription, but is now chiefly
supported by the government. Three hundred children are on
the list of the school. The director and head teacher, Mr N — ,
is a very worthy and enterprising man. Another school of the
kind has been opened at Casal Zeitun. It was founded by the
the munificence of a Spanish resident in Malta, Don Alberto de
Megino. A hundred children attend. Previously, it was proved
that in a population of four thousand contained in that burgh,
not more than twenty persons could read. Several private
schools have been instituted in Valetta and its suburbs for the
natives and others. But there is no school, at present, conduct-
ed by an English teacher. The number of the native poor
Maltese, who can read or write, is exceedingly small. It scarce
forms an exception to the character of general and complete
illiteracy.

Some incidents in the personal history of one of the profes-
sors of the University, are interesting and instructive.

Dr Nahdi, the gentleman to whom I refer, is a native of
Malta. He was born and bred a Catholic ; but on arriving at
mature age, his inquisitive mind put him upon investigating the
comparative claims of Popery and Protestantism. He studied
and meditated profoundly, and was assisted in his researches by
the judicious counsels and suggestions of Mr W — ,an enlightened
and serious friend. The result was a renouncement of the
Catholic faith, and an open confession of the great principles of
Protestantism.

Prior to this event, the opportunities of observation enjoyed
by Dr Nahdi, had been extensive. He prosecuted his medi-
cal studies five years at Naples, where he took his degrees.
Afterwards, he spent nearly three years in London to improve
his professional acquisitions, attending Guy's, Thomas', and Bar-
tholomew's hospitals, and reaping other advantages. He com-
menced business in Malta under very favourable auspices. His
practice was lucrative, and it continued to flourish till the change
of his views on the subject of religion, and his declared revolt
33

258 MALTA.

from Popery. Then his popularity was assailed and shaken ;
and soon it fell to the ground. Patients, instead of seeking him
for healing, turned from him in horror. His enemies were they
of his own household, for among his bitterest opposers were
Some of his nearer relatives. The sweets of many friendships
he was permitted no longer to enjoy, and the scripture was ful-
filled to his sad experience, which says, ' yea my own familiar
friend in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted
up the heel against me.'

Yet none of these things seem to have moved him. Dr N.
appears firmly anchored on the rock of Protestantism ; but he
assured me, that nothing but divine support, he feels, could have
carried him through the fiery ordeal, which he has passed.
Happily, though his professional practice is very limited, and his
pecuniary means are slender, he enjoys a place of respectability
in the University, where he fills the chair of professor of Chem-
istry and Pharmacy. It is a situafion of small profit, but even
this has been grudged him by his enemies. The supreme gov-
ernment, however, of that institution, being in the hands of the
English, — at least, it is moulded by their will whenever they
choose to exercise it. — they very properly interposed in the
case of Dr N. and would not suffer his expulsion from office.

This gentleman is a soberly serious, as well as an enlightened
man. In my calls upon him, of a morning, I have found him
engaged in reading a copy of the Scriptures in the Arabic or in
the original tongues, with an English version at hand for compar-
ison. He has a valuable library of works in the Latin, Greek,
Arabic, Italian, French and English languages. From the Doc-
tor I learn, that the number on the island who are invesfigating
the truth, is more encouraging than my first inquiries had led
me to believe. They are not of the lowest orders, but in gene-
ral they are poor. One, however, who is very favourably in-
clined to Protestantism, is quite wealthy. At his house, Dr N.
meets a few Maltese for the purpose of religious instruction every
Thursday and Sunday evening. By going there, more are
assembled than would come to his own residence. For this

FANATICISM.

259

* Joseph' of Malta, — I. mean the rich man, — has not openly
come out from tlie circumcision ; and if he be a true disciple, it
is secretly for fear of the priesdiood. The power and temper of
the latter are much what their Jewish prototypes displayed in the
times of the aposdes. The English government here answers
to die Roman in Jerusalem, as exercised by Pilate. It retains
exclusively the power of life and dead], of course ; but it leaves
the Catholic priesthood in all other diings to manage affairs
much as they choose.

Fifteen or twenty persons usually attend the Thursday ex-
ercise of Dr Nahdi. He replies to questions which are put,
obviates difficulties and objections, illustrates the principles of
Protestantism and the simplicity of Biblical truth, exposes Po-
pery, and refutes its maxims and pretensions from the counter
authority of revelation, the volume of which lies before him at
such times for reference. On Sunday evenings, the Doctor
meets a smaller number, reads to them a protestant discourse?
and leads their devotions. The labours of such a man, — his
piety, fervour and sound practical sense, — must eventuate in
good. May they meet with a large reward !

Missionaries, in their zeal to promote the cause which they
advocate, should be careful to join the wisdom of the serpent to
the harmlessness of doves. That die missionary gendemen in
Malta possess the double qualities, I would by no means ques-
tion. There is reason to believe that they uniformly aim to
temper their zeal widi becoming prudence. But unfortunately,
they have been wronged by die indiscreet conduct of some who
w^ere called their friends.

Two years ago, in the litde congregation of English Inde-
pendents, there were two officers, — a captain of ardllery, and
a subaltern, — alike distinguished for their fanatical opposition
to Popery. It happened on some Catholic festival that the
former was in command of one of the forts in the harbour, and
being ordered to fire a salute in honour of the saint to whom the
festival belonged, he peremptorily refused. The salute was a
thing of established etiquette. His disobedience he defended ovk

260 MALTA.

the plea that no christian should offer incense to Baal, which he
interpreted into a prohibition to burn gunpowder in homage of
a papist's idol. For his contempt of orders, he was tried by a
Court Martial, and cashiered. The subaltern, for some cause,
was convicted as ' particeps criminis,' and in like manner dis-
missed the service. He has since turned Methodist preacher.

The captain, on a former occasion, when a religious festival
was celebrated in St John's, and the area of the church was
crowded with devotees, offered the most pointed insults to the
place and the service, — wearing his military cap, uttering
offensive expressions, and even spitting on the pavement.
The last was an unpardonable affront in the eyes of a Catholic.
The officer found to his cost that he had proceeded too far.. The
congregation were enraged to madness, and began to press upon
him. He retreated ; a mob followed. With the utmost pre-
cipitation he made for the fort, which he reached with difficul-
ty, and within its gates only found protection for his very life.
For, such was the exasperation of the multitude, that had he
been seized, no doubt he would have been torn piecemeal. The
popular indignation was satiated at the moment by breaking the
windows of the chapel where he commonly worshipped.

These instances of fanaticism have been remembered to be
severely visited upon the heads of the unoffending. The worthy
gentlemen at the head of the several missionary establishments
in Malta, would probably condemn such excesses as readily as
other men ; for they are not devoid of discernment, and can
perceive very clearly their injurious tendencies in relation to the
cause which they have espoused. But so it is, that they have
suffered for what they had no controul over. Hated by the
Catholics, jeered at as Methodists by the Episcopalians, they
are looked upon by government with something more than cold-
ness. Previously to the affair of the officer which occasioned
his dismissal, the missionaries had been active in distributing
Tracts among the islanders and the Catholic portion of the sol-
diery. But the displeasure of the government and of the military
authorities was strongly expressed against such a proceeding ;

BIBLE CAUSE 261

and now the Tracts, printed here, are obliged to be sent off the
island for circulation.

When Dr Pinkerton visited Malta about three years ago, as
agent of the British and Foreign Bible Society, he recommend-
ed the opening of a public depository for copies of the scrip-
tures in Greek and Italian. A warehouse was accordingly pro-
cured, and fitted up for the purpose at considerable expense.
A note was then sent to the government as a matter of form,
apprising it of the arrangement, and asking its sanction for the
sale of the scriptures. The answer was suspended until instruc-
tions should be received from the government at home. Mean-
while the Catholic bishop of Malta addressed a note to the
authorities here, warmly protesting against the measure recom-
mended by Dr Pinkerton ; and the remonstrance of the prelate
was forwarded to England. In this stage of the business, a
deputation from the British and Foreign Bible Society waited
on Lord Bathurst in London, for the sake of obviating objections
to the proposal originally submitted to the government of
Malta, and to obtain his concurrence to the plan which they
had set on foot. They were unsuccessful. An order passed
prohibiting the sale of the Society's Bibles on the island. The
warehouse was shut up and the Catholic bishop triumphed.

Now the Bible is, or is not of any worth. If it 6e, — then
let copies be multiplied, and translations be authorized, and their
distribution be encouraged. If it be not, — then why profess a
religion which derives its origin from the Bible ? Why make it,
too, a national religion, and guard it at home with parliamentary
edicts, and drain a kingdom of a tenth of its annual taxes for its
support?

The true cause of the censurable policy in respect to these
matters pursued by the British government in Malta is, a
mawkish fear of prejudicing the Catholic priesthood against
them, and thereby weakening their popularity with the people.
They care not — so the island be theirs, — if superstitions be
rife, and religion may droop, and the Bible be spurned, and the
multitude continue to stumble and perish through the false and

262 MALTA.

delusive signals which their spiritual guides hold out to their
steps. It is the interest of the British monarch, not as Defender
of the Faith, but as Lord of the Isles, which is solely consulted.
The better to attach so valuable a possession as Malta to the
English crown, they truckle and they compromise. The colo-
nial rulers fawn on a class of men whom in heart they despise,
and those men, — the ecclesiastics, — have in their turn sagacity
enough to perceive die true motive, and they accept the indul-
gences accorded to them with no thanks for their bestowment.
For not more heartily are the missionaries disliked by the Eng-
lish government in Malta, than the government is disliked by the
population, boUi priests and people at large.

I am no professed apologist for the missionaries. Some of
their opinions I by no means embrace ; and I am free to say that
I came to Malta with feelings and sympathies not altogether en-
listed in their favour, other than as of men whose benevolence
should be respected. In looking at them in their double rela-
tion to the government and people, I have divested my mind of
prejudice, and not a remark am I aware of hazarding, in respect
to either party, but what is dictated in perfect truth and justice.
The homely old axiom that ' Fair play is a jewel,' will apply in
this case, — a rule, I apprehend, the benefits of which have been
hitherto withheld from the missionary philanthropists of Malta.

The policy of England in respect to die interests on which I
have dilated, may be said to be irrespecUve of places. I grant
it ; and so much the worse. The policy pursued in Malta, is
maintained at Gibrahar and Corfu. A single rector has the
cure of all the Ionian isles. Worldly policy and not religion is
the principle kept in view throughout the Bridsh dependencies.
This, it may also be alleged, is indispensable ; for in the
case of Malta, though the island is held by right of conquest, yet
what is a garrison of five thousand men opposed to a population
of one hundred and fifteen thousand ? To ensure the subjec-
tion of the latter, their prejudices must be humoured, their
customs be indulged, their superstitions be tolerated. Be it so.
I ask then, of what use to England is the possession of her mil-

CASTLEREAGII — A CONTRAST. 203

itary fastnesses dispersed over the world? The reply maybe
that she reserves them as points d'^appui in case of another rup-
ture with rival powers. But how much better would it be for her,
in place of her constant and costly provisions for the exigency of
possible war, to consult the interests and wants of her redundant
population in times of prevailing peace? How much wiser
would it have been at the close of her glorious struggle in 1815,
to have retained some of the fair possessions which her prowess
had won, as indemnities for her enormous sacrifices, — as places
of colonization for her swarming subjects, — and where the
natives would have blessed the beneficence of her reign, had
she been disposed to exercise it?

The answer again maybe, —it was not her fault that all these
rich and tempting conquests were abandoned. Agreed, then : —
Castlereagh's was the blame. Smiled upon in the saloons, he
was bowed out of the cabinets of his imperial and royal brother-
diplomatists. By a mistaken magnanimity, — and what with their
wheedling and their gewgaws, in the shape of snuff-boxes, ribbons
and crosses, — he gave back the splendid acquisitions of British
valour. At the close of his bootless missions, his master John
Bull, on summing up the score of his gains after all his batdes,
and debts and subsidies, found a ' beggarly account ' of bare
Rocks, — Gibraltar, Malta and Corfu, Sts. Helena and Ascen-
sion, with his favourites Bermuda, Halifax, and some others, — -
and now his children, clamorous for bread, must go search for it
among the snows of Canada, else, cross the burning line to
break it in the huts of the Hottentots, or mess with the savages
of Van Dieman's Land.

March 3. — After breakfast, I walked to the Esplanade Brit-
tannica beyond the western gate. Some companies of the
Eightieth Regiment happened to be parading. The music as
usual was fine, and the appearance of the troops perfectly neat
and soldier-like.

I could not but contrast their dress and equipments with those
in vogue in the times of the stern, mail-clad builders of these

264 MALTA.

frowning walls. The arms of the old knights, or rather of the sev-
eral Languages of their Order, are seen sculptured over the gates
and upon the hattlements of die surrounding fortresses. What a
revolution, not more in the science and practice of war, than in
many other arts far more essential to the happiness and well being
of man, since the days of the renowned chevaliers of St John !

The Pope has lately given an asylum to the remnants of the
Order, in Ferrara. It is only an asylum. In 1799, when the
emperor Paul was elected to the grand-mastership, better hopes
were entertained. His personal pleasure in the title, his creation
of a new Priory for the knights in his dominions, and the power-
ful protecdon which he promised the Order, gave them the
flattering expectation, either of regaining their lost heritage, or,
if banished forever from Malta, of securing to themselves an hon-
ourable and permanent retreat in Russia. But the hope was illu-
sory. The very army which the capricious monarch destined to
co-operate with the English fleet for the recovery of Malta from
the French, was ordered a few months after to assume a hostile
attitude against England, and even to hold itself in readiness to
march against the British possessions in India.

The death of Paul released the Order from its allegiance to
the autocrat of the north. Then followed the capture of Malta
by England ; but it opened up no brighter prospects for the
unfortunate knights. At that time they still numbered five Lan-
guages, namely, those of Italy, Anglo-Bavaria, Germany, Cas-
tillo and Arragon. But the riches of their commanderies had
been very much reduced. In Italy one half of their revenues
was already dried up, and the rapacity of the French govern-
ment wherever its influence subsequently spread, swept into its
coffers all the other wealth of the Order on which it could lay
hands. A number of the knights sought shelter in England, and
it was there that De Boisgelin published his elaborate history of
the Order, in which he took care to flatter in no measured terms
the English government and people. He vainly hoped from the
national magnanimity a restitution of the old dominion. But the

FORTUNES OP THE KNIGHTS. 265

paw of the British lion held fast the spoil which it had won.
Malta was England's ; and never more was it to become the
possession of the brave Companions.

In the best days of the Order, five hundred knights had their
homes in Malta. They dwelt in the sumptuous edifices and
stately palaces of the capitol, or, retired to their country-houses,
which were the seats of hospitality, they cultivated, at generous
cost, the soil of the rugged isle. Now, their palaces and villas,
their gardens and demesnes, with this proud fortress wherein
they trusted, have all passed into the possession of strangers.
Only two knights remain in Malta, the venerable survivers of a
fallen but illustrious line. They live as exiles in the scenes of
their ancient homes. Their presence recalls the memory of the
stern old Roman wandering a mendicant over plains once sig-
nalized by the valour of his arm, and the language of the sup-
plicant they might almost adopt, — ' Date obolum Belisario.'

The knights, in every point of view, were an extraordinary
race, — extraordinary in their character, as military hospitallers,
church-robed warriors and sworded monks, — in their history,
for their deeds of gallantry and martial fame, — in the lesson of
their fall, exhibiting the transitoriness of human glory. ' Yes-
terday, they might have stood against the world ; now, none
so poor as to do them reverence.'

Re-entering the city, I p ssed through the postern sally-port.
It is a passage much more extensive than that which I have de-
scribed, called the Marino, being at least one hundred yards in
length, and like the latter cut through solid rock. It conducts
under the vast walls and bastions of the city, and the passenger
on emerging from it, finds himself among the dizzying crowds of
the streets of La Valetta.

Passing by the principal barracks, an inscription caught my
eye, the latinity and sentiment of which struck me as alike ques-
tionable. It is affixed to the British arms which are placed on
the top of an arcade. I copied it for the sake of accuracy.

Magnae et invictas Brittaniae
Militensium amor et Europae vox
Has Insulas conHrmat, A. D. 1814.
34

266 MALTA.

At noon, the roar of guns from the shipping and several of
the forts, announced the stiiling of the Revenge, seventyfour,
with Admiral Sir Harry Neale, for England.

I had a fine view of the ship as she stood out to sea from
between the castles of St Angelo and St Elmo. She had all her
canvas spread, and moved with the ease and grace of a fay's
skiff. The sea, under a cloudless sky, exhibited a perfectly blue
level, save the long line of white foam which was left in the
vessel's w^ake.

March 4. (Sunday.) — The day has been altogether lovely.
A more delightful temperature could not be wished. At half
past nine, A. M. the mercury in a glass suspended in my bal-
cony, stood at seventyfive degrees.

As the air was uncommonly clear, I sent the servant to the
terrace as soon as he made his appearance in the morning, to
look out for Mount ^tna. Usually the mountain is only dis-
cernible, if at all, very early in the day, and though I have often
gazed in its direction, I have hitherto failed in obtaining a good
view of it. In an air line, its summit is distant from Malta at
least one hundred and fifty miles.

The messenger came down with a countenance brightened with
joy and surprise, and said that not only jEtna was clearly visible,
but a large extent of the coast of Sicily. The truth of his report
I soon verified, for going above, I saw with wonderful dis-
tinctness, with the naked eye, both the mountain and a line of
shore that stretched to the east and west for many degrees of
the horizon. Cape Passaro, the proximate point of Sicily, is
not nearer than sixty miles. Thence the coast bears away for
many leagues in a deep curve towards Syracuse ; yet the whole
seemed scarcely a dozen miles distant. This may be ex-
plained partly by the extraordinary clearness of the air, but
chiefly on the principles of atmospheric looming. For, consid-
ering the position of the eye at Malta, and the distance of a
great part of the land which appeared, it was not possible that
so much of the latter could be seen unless raised and magnified
nrcording to some of the phenomena of optical reflection. I

VIEW OF MT. ^TNA. 267

am satisfied in my own mind, at any rate, of the truth of this
remark as applied to the remoter part of the coast, the lowness
of which, calculating on the intervening sphericity of the earth,
must have otherwise screened it altogether.

jEtna, nevertheless, needed no aid from looming to render
itself visible, provided, as in this case, the air was very clear.
The wonder was that it should have appeared so distinct and
near, and that its bold and majestic profile should have been so
perfectly drawn on the distant horizon. The mountain rose far
in the background, and seemed all at once to upheave its
gigantic form. To the eye it looked thrice as high as the coast.
Its top and sides were covered with snow. The figure of
the mountain was an imperfect cone, rising from a very broad
base. The upper line was irregular, declining from west to
east, and indented very strikingly in one point which could
hardly be mistaken for the crater. On a part of the eastern
front a dark patch was visible, which looked tike a huge chasm
or precipice. The rest of the mountain, with the exception of
the black indenting line of the top, was almost dazzlingly white ;
for, lying to the north of Malta, the sun shone full upon its hoary
steeps. No smoke could be seen, though in periods of great
irruption it has been discerned, I understand, even from so
vast a distance.

I have touched upon some of the features of this remote land-
scape, but to communicate the effect of the spectacle is impossi-
ble. It was truly sublime. Every accessory was present to
heighten the emotions which it enkindled, — the splendour of the
morning, the balmy softness of the air, the profound repose
of the sea, and the beauty of the heavens, robed as they were in
their richest cerulean hue. The hum of voices from the streets
rose in a subdued murmur to the height of the lofty terrace on
which I stood ; and birds, some of strange song, but all of great
sweetness, poured forth their various melodies.

It happened just then to be a season of momentary respite
from the almost ceaseless clatter of the Catholic bells. But
their tongues did not long remain mute ; and the first chime

268 MALTA.

brought down my upward thoughts. From my balcony, after-
wards, to look forth upon the passing throng, to observe the many
scarce pretending a pause from their usual avocations, to con-
template the multitude, especially of females, hastening to the
water's side to cross to Burmola, thence to set forth on their pil-
grimage to Casal Zahbah, to confess and be absolved from their
sins committed during the late Carnival, — to reflect how few
of the hastening crowd were thoughtful of God, or hasting to
Him with penitential hearts for mercy, — to think of all this, to
see how the Sabbath is misunderstood and profaned, how the
purposes of religion are evaded, and the gospel is made of no
effect through ' the traditions of men,' — it was enough to swell
the soul with grief. And if the Saviour of the world wept over
Jerusalem as he thought of her iniquities and her wilful indiffer-
ence to the blessed day of her visitation, the lament may be still
poured out over a benighted race in witnessing their moral
abasement and delusions, — in seeing them seeking for salvation
from ^ stocks and stones,' — their pictures and sculptured mar-
bles, — and trusting to fallible mortals for the forgiveness and
remission of their sins.

At the government church I found the usual paucity of at-
tendants. The number was about one hundred and twenty.
A practical discourse was preached, which lasted fifteen minutes
in the delivery. — The music of this church, performed with
martial instruments, which here as at Gibraltar was at first dis-
agreeable to me, has become by familiarity rather pleasing
than otherwise. The strains are sometimes grand and even
solemn.

A battalion of troops, which marched this afternoon to the es-
planade with drums beating and colours flying, have just returned
through the city with the same din and pomp. Inquiring the cause
of this movement, I have learned that the new governor, who
landed four days ago, chose this occasion for a general review
of the military of the garrison. As his stay here is not likely to
be short, and as there is no threatened invasion from either
Turks, Moors, or Egyptians, it should seem that another day

SUNSET — DISTANT VISION. 269

less exceptionable, might have been selected for the parade.
But, perhaps he thinks that military laws naturally supersede,
and are paramount to the laws of God, as embodied in that
antiquated code called the Bible.

When near the hour of sunset, I walked to the western ram-
parts. The evening was a beautiful close to a most beautiful
day. The streets, piazzas and batteries were filled with pedes-
trians. As I stood in the noble galleries of the gardens at the
southern angle of the walls, — topping ramparts elevated at least
one hundred and fifty feet from the deep bed of the moat —
the sun went down in mild and cloudless glory behind the
distant towers of Citta Vecchia. The usual evening gun was that
moment fired from St Angelo. Almost simultaneously, the
marine volley on board the Asia was heard, as her colours were
struck for the night, and the fine music of trumpets floated
proudly on the air.

The bay was swarming with boats passing from the opposite
burghs. I counted at one time no less than a hundred and
thirtyfour ; and new ones were continually coming into view as
others disappeared. The return boats were freighted with pil-
grims from Casal Zahbah. The multitude come back absolved
and shriven, and of course ready to commence a new score of
' peccadillos.'

March 5. — A subject of conversation with almost every one
I have met today, has been the wonderful distinctness with which
Mount jEtna and the coast of Sicily were seen yesterday. It is
accounted byall very extraordinary. The mountain, at times,
did not seem more than six or eight leagues distant, and,
together with the coast, was visible the whole day. The
latter circumstance is extremely rare, as generally any part of
Sicily, if it be distinguishable, can only be seen in very early
morning. Gentlemen, who have resided here for years, assure
me that they have never remarked such a duration of the phe-
nomenon as yesterday.

Owing to the actual remoteness of the mountain and the in-
tervening medium of air, it commonly appears from Malta like

270 MALTA.

a cloud, or faint nebula, the edges of which are ill defined. But
throughout yesterday the snows on its back were as plainly seen,
— the precipices on the right or southeastern declivity, the
broken edge of the summit, and the very hollow of a crater,
either new or old, — all were as distinctly observable as the
colours and forms, (for example,) of any structures in Fort St
Julien's, just across this bay. Today, though sunny and mild,
-^tna and the coast of Sicily could no more be descried than as
if they existed not.

This being the first Monday in the month, many have gone
from the city to a place in the neighbourhoDd where criminals
are usually executed, for the purpose of praying their souls out
of purgatory. A hundred persons and upwards might be seen
at once on the ground, in kneeling postures, offering their prayers
with apparent fervency. This is done on the principle that one
good turn deserves another ; namely, that the souls released
through such instrumentality should intercede in behalf of their
benefactors, if they, in like manner, be hereafter doomed to the
pains of purgatory. But prayers, lay prayers, it seems are not
enough to help these spirits out of prison. A strong box fast-,
ened in the earth is kept constantly near the place of execution,
and in the top, a small hole is bored, into which moneys are
dropped by the superstitious. The contents are examined at
stated periods, and are then appropriated to the saying of mass
by the priests for the souls of the criminals.

This is not all the absurd display of Catholic superstition,
which I have witnessed today. Men have been perambulating
the street every hour since sunrise, ringing a little bell, and car-
rying a painted tin box to receive contributions to be devoted to
the celebration of mass, for the souls of the deceased poor.
This is more or less practised every Monday. It is one of the
thousand devices for filching money from the people at large, for
the sake of pampering in idleness a swarming priesthood. If
the ecclesiastics have that compassion which they affect for the
miseries, both temporal and spiritual, of their fellow-creatures,
why not disburse some of their own worldly substance in reliel

VERNAL TEMPERATURE. 271

of the living poor, and offer up their prayers gratuitously in be-
half of the poor defunct ? The reason is, — jtidging from their
practice, — that a cheap thing is of litde worth, and prayers Vv'hich
would cost nothing, would be destitute of spiritual efficacy. It
is money, they imagine, which feathers the shaft, and can alone
carry upward the arrow of intercession. Without it, instead of
reaching heaven, it would fall back impotent to earth.

March 6. — Personal comfort depending very much on the
state of the weather, it is not surprising that it should be a fre-
quent theme of remark. I have already recorded some obser-
vations on the temperature of this island, and at the hazard of
the charge of reverting to a hackneyed topic, I shall say a little
more of it.

The climate of Malta continues to please me. J question if
a finer one can be found in any part of the Mediterranean.
Comparing my longer observations on its salubriousness with
the information which I have received, I have wondered that
the island is not oftener visited by invalids in quest of health.
I have been here between five and six weeks, and have not
known the thermometer lower than fiftythree degrees, nor
higher than seventysix or seventyeight. In my rooms at two
o'clock, this P. M., with the windows open, the mercury stood
exactly at 66°. The air of Malta is peculiarly soft. There
is a certain deliciousness in the feeling, which I remember
to have experienced nowhere else. Since my arrival in the
city, there has been scarcely a day, during a part of which, I
have not set with open windows.

Later in the season, it is true, the weather becomes sultry;
but even then, Malta enjoys the advantages of its insularity ;
and though much farther south than Rome or Naples, the cli-
mate in mid-summer^ is said to be, generally, not so oppressive
as in either of those capitals. The greater convenience of ac-
cess to most of the continental cities, will continue probably to
make them preferable as places of resort by valetudinarians ;
but where a voyage is contemplated for health, I am satisfied
that Malta intrinsically would be a better choice of destinatio*i,

272 MALTA.

than Lisbon, Marseilles, or Leghorn. There are objects of in-
terest enough here to occupy attention, and to afford both plea-
sure and profit during a visit of a few weeks, if not months. If
there be some things to pain, there are others and more to
gratify.

Yet visiters, as such, rarely come here, and invalids are equal-
ly strangers. The company at Vicary's has undergone little
change since my arrival, and being the best house in Malta, it
would naturally be resorted to by all new comers, who study
convenience and comfort. I found here an English baronet,
and a captain in the royal navy with his family. Two sprigs of
British nobility, — lords P. and B., attached to the Asia, — have
lately taken up their quarters here ; and these are all the lodg-
ers. The arrangements of the house are excellent, and the
charges are reasonably moderate-
In some of my notes, shortly after my arrival, I passed a cur-
sory observation on my accommodations. But a more partic-
ular descripti ;n of the principal room assigned me, may not be
amiss, as it will give a pretty good notion of the interior of the
better apartments in Valetta.

The floor, walls and ceiling are made of stone, laid in square
masses, the surH ces of which are smoothed. The floor is cov-
ered with oil cloth, over which is a rich Turkey carpet. The
walls are painted in imitation of beautiful border-paper ; the
ground colour is a light yellow. The ceiling is covered with
cloth hangings, ornamented with fanciful devices, such as Cu-
pids, Hymen's torches, harps and flowers, — so that one sees
nothing of the stones above, though conscious that they are
there, aye, and possessing great weight. — Suppose, I sometimes
say to myself, one of them by an unlucky chance, should loosen
and fall? But this, by the by.- — The ceiling, as usual, is
lofty ; and the apartment itself is about thirty feet square.

The furniture is good, but otherwise not remarkable. A
side-board, card-table, work-table, and small dining-table, all of
mahogany, — a Grecian hair-couch, a sofa, a due proportion
of single and arm-chairs, a large painting representing the city,

CHEZ MOI — BLOCKADE OF '98. 273

harbour and suburbs of Valetta, — full white curtains trailing,
when dropped, upon the floor, — these make up les meuhles.

The w^indows are of great height, and open by means of
hinges, like double or folding doors, swinging inward. The
panes of glass are very broad and large, so much so that a sin-
gle set, with the deep frame, is sufficient for each half of a
window. Communicating with the apartment, there are three
massive doors, the pannels of which are painted with fancy
landscapes, very neatly executed. They look like oil paintings
ingeniously set into the wood-work of the doors, as though
the latter were designed to be merely their frames. The edges
are gilt, as are also the broad mouldings of the lintels of the doors
themselves. Besides these communications, one of the windows
serves for a passage, being continued quite down to the floor,
and opening on a large old balcony which overlooks Palace
Square. The balcony is decorated with plants in stone vases,
among which are two American aloes, a Turkish cypress, an
orange tree, some geraniums, and others not known to me.

The Maltese are fond of cultivating ornamental shrubs and
flowers. The climate is so genial, that most varieties of green-
house plants grow here without need of shelter. They place
them not only in their balconies, but frequently in their halls,
and along the stairways leading up from the courts of their
houses. Canary birds, kept in cages, are dispersed in these
domestic shrubberies, and their concerts are very enlivening.

It is now sunset, or what is called here, ' gun-fire.' The
report has just sounded. In the square, the band have struck
up their usual evening /ew dejoie. Dinner has been announced,
and I leave my notes to attend to that important summons.

March 7. — I have conversed with many who have a lively
recollection of the sufferings and privations endured in the me-
morable siege of Malta, under the French. They were very
severe. The obstinacy of the French in retaining the island
to the last possible moment, and the perseverance and vigilance
of the English in keeping up the blockade, and in intercepting
supplies for the garrison during the two years of the investment,
35

274 MALTA.

reduced the inhabitants at length to the most pitiable state of
want. General Vaiibois, who was left by Buonaparte in com-
mand, manifested a resolution and firmness of the most extra-
ordinary nature.

Few military exploits of brilliancy occurred between the
besiegers and the besieged. In this respect, the beleaguering
differed widely from the renowned one of 1565. Then, the
most splendid acts of heroism were reciprocally performed ;
now, it was a cool and passive courage shown on the one hand,
and a constancy in maintaining positions of annoyance rather
than of aggression, on the other.

It is remarkable that a fortress which for two hundred and
thirtythree years had been safe from assaults, namely, ever since
the glorious repulse of the Turks by the brave La Valette and
his companions — a fortress deemed impregnable, and long
regarded as the bulwark of the Christian world — should in two
years time be captured by two rival powers, and its conquest be
meditated by a third, equally competent to effect it in the begin-
ning, at least, of the crisis. Three days after the appearance of
Buonaparte off the coast, with the fleet destined against Egypt,
the flag of the Republic was flying over all the towers of Malta,
and Buonaparte himself was dictating his orders in the city of
Valetta. It was a mighty armament, it is true, which he brought
with him. The ships and transports extended along the whole
line of coast, from the isle of Goza to Marsa Sirocco, — a landing
at the southeastern extremity of Malta. It seemed like the
gathering of a black and portentous cloud, destined to burst with
the violence of a tornado on the unfortunate island. In that
fleet was the famous ' army of England,' commanded by the
greatest captain of the age, and officered by chiefs scarcely less
dread and valiant in battle ; — for there were Lasnes and Baillard,
Marmont and D'Hilliers, Kleber and Dessaix. But the knights
were bound by their vows ' nev^r to reckon the number of an
enemy ; ' and had not treason crept into their ranks, and had
not their counsels been distracted, and if brethren had not be-
come foemen of each other, such was the strength of their

HOMPESCIl AND VALETTE. 275

defences that they might easily have held out long enough
against the French force, immense as it was, to have compelled
Napoleon to raise the siege in consideration of the more alluring
conquests which he sought impatiently in the East. The trai-
tors were of the class of French knights, who constituted at this
time the major part of the whole Order, and comprehended the
three divisions of Provence, Auvergne and France proper. The
Republic haughtily demanded that every chevalier of French
birth, should transfer his allegiance from the Grand Master to the
Directory. Many were true to their vows as knights, but others
followed the examples of Ransij at and Dolomieu, and assisted in
betraying the island into the hands of a power essentially as
foreign to them as the Sublime Porte. ^"^

Unhappily, the Grand Master, Hompesch, was destitute of that
decision and firmness which were indispensable to a commander
at such a juncture. He shut himself up in his palace during
the short investment of the capital, and contented himself with
issuing conflicting orders which were seldom obeyed. One
evening, when Marmont was thundering at the gates, he roused
from his inactivity, intending to put himself at the head of his
remaining adherents, and march through the city to take personal
command of the advanced post of Florian. But his friends in
the palace dissuaded him from indulging the generous impulse,
which, had it been followed up, might have still saved the Order,
or at least have put an honourable end to its existence.

How different was the conduct of the brave old Valette in the
ancient siege ! On one occasion, when St Elmo had fallen, and
the whole Ottoman force was directed against St Angelo and its
outworks, a mine was sprung which threw down a part of one of
the advanced walls. The Turks, rushing furiously to the charge,
mounted the breach and succeeded in planting their colours
at the foot of the parapet. La Valette saw it^ and though
the knights besought him, — one of them on his knees, — to
retire into the citadel for safety, — ' Never,' he replied, pointing
to the enemy's standards then waving in the wind, — ' Never till
I pull down those trophies which the infidels have raised.' With

276 MALTA.

only a light morion on his head, not stopping to put on other
armonr even so much as a cuirass, he boldly advanced to meet
the assailants, accompanied by the knights who were immediately
about his person, and charged so impetuously that the Turks
wavered and were soon thrown into confusion. The example
of the intrepid chief inspired his followers with enthusiastic
daring. A company of knights rushed from another part of the
walls to reinforce this devoted little band, and to cover the per-
son of the Grand Master ; and after most desperate efforts the
Turks were utterly routed, their standards were overthrown,
and the banner of St John again floated in triumph over the
shattered wall.

History records another sublime sentiment uttered by the
veteran hero in the thickest of the fight, in answer to renewed
entreaties from his followers that he would withdraw for self-
security : — ' How,' cried he, ' can I, at the age of seventyone,
die more gloriously than in the midst of my brothers and
friends, in the service of God, and while contending for the
defence of our holy religion ! '

Such a chief is alone a host. Alas, Hompesch was not Va-
lette ; though Napoleon — a greater than Mustapha, — rivalled
in his fortunes Solyman, the victor of Rhodes.

Buonaparte rested in Malta only long enough to arrange a
provisional government, to seize upon its ready treasures, and
make a general levy of sailors and soldiers among the natives to
recruit his fleet and army, and then with a few knights who en-
listed under his banners, departed for Egypt. The number of
troops left with Vaubois in garrison, amounted only to four
thousand. A thousand more were afterwards added, chiefly the
crews of the few transports and frigates which contrived to
reach Malta after the catastrophe of Aboukir.

Hompesch retired to Trieste with some faithful knights, but
they were soon dispersed, and the Order was then virtually dis-
banded. He was allowed a nominal pension of one hundred
thousand crowns ; and in return for the plate, jewels and other
effects w^hichhe was compelled to leave behind, he received in

SUFFERINGS OF THE BESIEGED. 277

promissory notes and specie, a sum amounting to six hundred
thousand livres, (one hundred and twenty thousand dollars.) No
other property was taken with him, — except the pious relics of
St John's hand, a part of the real cross, and a miraculous image
of the Holy Virgin ! These were afterwards remitted to the
Cathedral of Maha.

Nelson having made short work in cutting up the French fleet
in Egypt, despatched a squadron which suddenly appeared off
Malta and demanded its immediate surrender. Vaubois, though
astonished at a summons which told him too plainly the rapid
ebb in the fortunes of his master, sent a Spartan reply, the
purport of which was, Come and Take it. This not suiting the
convenience of the British admiral at that early hour, he was
content to watch Malta, and enforce a strict blockade in hopes
of reducing it by famine. The guns of Valetta and the sur-
rounding bulwarks looked too grim for closer parley.

The siege commenced in September, 1798, and with it be-
gan the hardships of the besieged. At the outset, there was only
corn enough to last the inhabitants seven months at the usual
rate of consumption. Other provisions were still more scanty,
yet the garrison held out for twentyfour months ; and it only
surrendered when every expedient was exhausted, there was
literally nothing left to eat. Water was the only supply which
failed not. The rains happened to be unusually copious, and
the cisterns were never dry.

Six months after the commencement of the siege, provisions
sold at most exorbitant rates. Converting the cost from French
prices into Federal currency, the following may be taken as sam-
ples ; — namely, fresh meat brought 68 cents a pound ; a pigeon,
$1.20 ; a rabbit 1.50 ; an egg 8 cents, and a fowl 5.80. — In
six months more, the prices had advanced in general above a
hundred percent ; — for instance, fresh pork sold for $1.44 per
lb. ; a pigeon for 2.40; a fowl for 12.00, and an egg for 16 cents.
A pound of cheese, which during the first half year sold for 60
cents, was now priced at 1,75. Fish of the best sort brought
from 70 to 80 cents per lb. and everything else was propor-

278 MALTA.

tionably dear. After nine months more, pork had risen to
J 1,72 ; a pound of sugar sold for $9.00 and a pound of coffee
fetched from 10 to 12 dollars.

But as many of the people had no money to purchase food
they resorted to other methods to help out what allowance of
corn they received from the general storehouses. All the dogs
and cats in Valetta were killed and eaten. Rats were eagerly
hunted up and devoured. Large ones, especially those found
in bake-houses, when offered for sale, brought 50 cents and
even upwards. Asses, mules and horses, were slaughtered for
food. Only a few were left which were necessary for grinding
corn or useful for military service ; and when the corn was
worked up, these too were butchered.

The scarcity of provisions was not the only suffering. The
whole of the wood in the magazines and basins was early con-
sumed ; and to supply the wants of the troops, nay, of the bakers
themselves, the only resource left was to break up the old trading
vessels which were judged the least fit for service. The people,
for the most part, were totally destitute of fuel.

For the payment of the troops and officers under the govern-
ment, recourse was had to forced loans from the inhabitants, to
the remaining wealth of the churches, and lastly, to the funds in
the great pawn-brokery, called Monte di Pieta. Near a mil-
lion of livres, (two hundred thousand dollars,) were raised from
the latter fund. But at length every supply of money failed,
and the pay of the troops was stopped. ^^

It is surprising that the French general could have maintained
his authority under such inauspicious circumstances with his own
troops ; and still more, that the people did not rise in rebellion,
and demand and force a surrender of the city. But they gene-
rally acquiesced till near the close, and Vaubois himself enjoyed
to the last a considerable degree of popularity. No one but a
Frenchman could have compelled priests to work, and take their
share of labour in strengthening the fortifications ; but this Vau-
bois did, and some of them wrought very effectively. No one
but a Frenchman, would have thought of amusing the people

SURRENDER — RETROj'P ECT. 279

with theatrical entertainments at such a time, but Vaubois kept
in pay a company of comedians for that purpose, so long as pay
he could possibly furnish ; and when in default of this, and in
consequence of die scarcity of provisions, he dismissed them, a
corps of amateurs was sought out to take their places, and the
theatre was attended as regularly as before.

But Vaubois owed his ascendency chiefly to other means.
He had personal merits which commanded respect. He took
part and lot with the soldiery and the inhabitants in the severest
privations which they endured ; and in his measures calculated
for general defence, he knew how to temper sternness with a
certain degree of lenity. When at length he capitulated, it was
with honour. The principal articles which he demanded in the
treaty, were granted. The garrison marched out with all the
honours of war, — with personal arms, drums beating, colours
flying, matches lighted, and two four-pounders with their car-
riages at the head of the column. The officers and troops were
transported to Marseilles at the expense of the British govern-
ment; and, whatever we may think of his cause, and whatever
of the character of his army in a moral point of view, Vaubois
for himself claimed, as he had won, the reputation of an able
and heroic, though unfortunate general.

— But I must quit this topic, and with it prepare to leave Malta.
I have arranged to depart on the morrow, but not without regret.
The few weeks which I have passed on this island, have given
me attachments to the spot not easy to be shaken off; and from
the first, I have had a growing and lively interest in the history,
condition and prospects of its inhabitants. I have found here
warm hearts, and in the various families to which I have been
introduced, I have been greeted with kindest hospitality.

It is painful to go from almost any spot which has become
familiarized, with the certainty that it will never more be seen ;
and to part with friends who are valued, with the reflection
that their society can never after be enjoyed. Especially, if the
traveller, instead of turning homeward, sets forth to a new coun-
try which he must enter a perfect stranger, — where, among the

280 MALTA.

many thousands of its population, there is no face perchance he
has ever heheld, and no hand which he has pressed in friend-
ship, — a country which he must approach all ignorant, of
course, of the incidents which shall there befall him, the manners
he shall find, the acquaintance he may form, and the reception
he will obtain. But it will be better hereafter to describe what
shall come, than at this hour vainly to anticipate it ; and the
remainder of my time in Malta I shall devote to looking at things
present and near, which, with the setting of tomorrow's sun, will
become to me things, then, distant and gone.

CHAPTER X

ARRIVAL IN SICILY.

Departure from Malta. — Sicilian Brigantine. — Regulations' on Board. — Cape
Passaro. — Superstition of the Padrone. — Arrival in Syracuse. — Recep-
tion on Shore. — Port Officers. — A Fellow Lodger. — Accommodations. —
Cathedral Square. — General View. — Temple of Minerva. — Museum. —
Ancient Bath. — Fountain of Arethusa ; Modern Nymphs. — Alpheus. — Ca-
sino.— Country Scenery. — Tomb of Archimedes, — Street of Sepulchres. —
Latomise. — Ear of Dionysius. — Greek Theatre. — Amphitheatre. — Char-
acter of the Old Romans.

At Sea ; March 9. — Yesterday, at four P. M., I took passage
in a Sicilian brigantine, bound for Syracuse. It was an hour
before we left the harbour of Malta, but it was pleasantly spent
in company with friends who had kindly come on board to
express their good wishes at parting, and who remained till the
anchor was weighed. They freighted me with letters, introduc-
tory and recommendatory, and manifested a solicitude to render
my future travels agreeable to myself and useful in the way
of instruction.

A light breeze wafted us to sea. Valetta, with its embattled
towers and strong suburbs, looked stately and vericrable in the
parting view. As I gazed upon the lessening isle, the sun sunk
in a flood of glory behind the distant ridge of the Bengemma
hills. An evening of softest beauty succeeded, and threw a
silver veil on the receding objects. At length, they totally
disappeared ; and when night closed around, it spread its can-
opy of starry grandeur over an uninterrupted surface of waters.
It was well that evening on deck had something to allure, for,
on descending to the cabin at a late hour, I found that all was
36

282 PASSAGE TO SYRACUSE.

comfortless there. It was not the least unpleasant circumstance
that I was the only passenger on board, and that I had none to
converse with but the boorish master of a noisy and boorish
crew, any one of which seemed to have nearly equal author-
ity with the nominal head. A Sicilian brigantine, — the best
vessel, by the way, in which I could find a passage, — can hardly
be expected to abound with the comforts of an American or
British packet ; but 1 was not prepared for such complete pov-
erty of accommodations as I have experienced here. A little
cabin had been assigned me, but all the equipments of the berth,
consisted of a leathern mattress and bolster, each about as soft
as a pine plank. My own cot equipage and night personals
had, unluckily, been so closely packed away in a part of my
luggage, that I thought the trouble of reaching them would be
greater than the inconvenience of doing without them. Ac-
cordingly, I laid down under my top-coats, and contrived to
'worry' through the night after a sort; but it was a hard
m.atter. A damp breeze which sprung up after midnight,
forced its way through the wide crevices of my crazy state-
room, and not only chilled me severely, but left a cold which
will probably remain for some days, an unwelcome souvenir
of my voyage in a Sicilian brigantine.

During the night there was a constant noise, and hurrying to
and fro, upon deck. Not only were orders vociferated, but
voices would clamour in a tone of anger, in the most common
conversation. It has been much the same thing today. The
crew of this small vessel consists of about twenty hands, and
the most of ihera are savage looking fellows. In appearance,
they would do honour to a company of buccaneers. Order
there is none. If a rope is to be pulled, or a yard braced, it is
an even chance that the captain, or Padrone as he is called, has
to do it himself. Or if one hand runs to execute the order,
half the crew will be likely to follow his example, and between
them all, the work may go undone.

An American ship-master would smile if he were to witness
what passes on board ; especially, to observe the ' Jack-fellow-

SICILIAN BRIGANTINE — REGULATIONS.

283

like' equality which reigns throughout. The helmsman sits on
a chair during his turn, and conversation goes on with him as
freely as between the rest of the crew. Dinner was furnished
them at the hour of twelve. The crew seated themselves about
the deck, in pairs, a single plate answering for two. The padrone
and another ate from the same dish. No knives were used,
but a fork and a piece of hard biscuit served for implements.
The mate placed his plate on the companion-top, at a convenient
distance from the helmsman, who had no difficulty in supplying
himself and steering the vessel at the same time, — all this,
without leaving his seat. The rest of the crew had their plates
on the bare deck, or placed on a block or spar as they chose ;
and they helped themselves, some with a fork, others with
their fingers. The food consisted of salads, and a mess of fish
and herbs, sliced and seethed in a common vessel. It was
served with a prodigious quantity of stale oil ; and to judge
from the fumes, it must have been a precious olio. The
beverage was trashy wine, drank from bottles, and water distrib-
uted among the groups in stone jars. Miserable as is such fare,
the men seem to thrive on it, looking nearly as stout, though not
so tall, as American seamen in general. During the meal,
coarse and boisterous jokes passed round from the captain to
the lowest hand of the company. Indeed, as I have observed
from the moment of coming on board, all talked just as flippantly,
and confidently, and fiercely, even when contradicted by the
padrone, as if all w^ere masters and independent one of another.

How long would the American marine, commercial or
military, subsist in such a condition ^ If our seamen be
ruled strictly on board ship, do they not find an equivalent
in their relatively high wages, and the abundant and sub-
stantial fare which they receive at their three daily meals ?
As the replies to these queries can be easily anticipated, I may
pass to other matters.

It is a pleasure to find myself approaching the period of
manumission. We have had thus far, a favourable run, as

284 PASSAGE TO SYRACUSE.

respects the wind. It is two P. M., and Syracuse is only three
or four leagues distant.

Going upon deck about sunrise, I found we were making the
coast of Sicily under a gentle breeze ; the southeastern prom-
ontory was then not more than fifteen miles off. The sky was
considerably overcast ; yet over and far above the shores which
were heaving into view, towered the Cyclopian form of Mt.
iEtna. Its broad shoulders glittered with their snowy mantle.
Neither with my naked eye, nor a glass, have I been able to
distinguish, yet, any smoke issuing from its crater.

At ten, we had approached the land sufficiently near to see
gardens and vineyards, corn-fields and olive groves, besides
houses, castles and towns. The coast, and the country within,
appeared well studded with the sites of human population.
An hour after, we passed Cape Passaro. distant about a league.
On an island in advance of the point, is a small fort, formerly
erected as a defence against pirates. It is still garrisoned, but
at present is of little use, except serving as a place of confine-
ment for criminals, particularly military offenders.

Some villages succeeded, in which the inhabitants were seen
abroad. Several walled towns, ornamented with turrets and
churches, looked very picturesque. These, and the various
objects of this interesting shore, are now flitting before my eyes.
The wind has freshened into a strong breeze, which is bearing
us along at a rapid rate. Syracuse is already lifting its gray
towers into view ; and in an hour more, we shall probably be up
with the ancient Ortygia.

The propitiousness of the voyage, the captain piously ascribes
to the kind offices of the Virgin, which, it seems, he bespoke
before leaving Malta. He relies for general success in his
cruises on the name of his vessel, and a litde shrine which he
has dedicated to the saint, in his main cabin. The brigantine is
called Maria Addolorata, or Mary the Afflicted. In a recess
of the cabin, there is a coloured print of the Virgin, repre-
senting her as lifting her streaming eyes to heaven, with a

ARRIVAL. 285

bosom quite unmaidenly exposed, into which a great sword is
thrust in allusion to the scripture which says, 'Yea, a sword
shall pierce through thine own soul also.' The niche is formed
by a small projection, supported by four little pillars, the mould-
ings of which are tawdrily gilt. A smoky lamp is kept burning
before the picture always during a voyage, but as there is no
need of propitiating the Virgin in port, it is then extinguished.
I observed the padrone and sotto-padrone, performing their hur-
ried orisons before it, separately, in the course of the morning.
The ceremony in each instance, lasted about one minute, and
consisted of the usual pantomime of crossings, genuflexions and
grimaces.

Certes, the Virgin must feel flattered by all this attention,
especially with the indulgence of a lamp ! — But, seriously,
what idolatry is there in such worship ; and what impiety to exalt
the spouse of Joseph into a Divinity ! It would seem that the
sacred writers had said the least possible of her; — and that, too,
in terms not always the most respectful, — purposely, to prevent
divine honours being paid to her, or at least, to leave those
without excuse, who in after ages might render them.

Syracuse ; March 10. — My voyage terminated favourably.
At four o'clock yesterday, we were anchored in the harbour.
The distance from Valetta is computed to be one hundred and
twenty miles, and as it had been sailed in twentythree hours, I
had no reason to complain of the length of the passage. On
the contrary, its safe and speedy accomplishment was matter of
congratulation, the more so, as it was obviously owing to other
auspices, — if haply not those of the Virgin, — than the skill
and good conduct of the padrone and his turbulent crew.

A boat was manned, and I proceeded to report myself to the
authorities on shore. As we drew near the landing, the pa-
drone who accompanied me, called out, ' un cavaliere Ameri-
cano ! ' and stepping upon the pier of the Parlatorio, the first
question put to me was, whether I was not an American officer }
I replied, that I had no pretensions to any other honour than
being a plain American citizen ; and then, according to form,

286 SYRACUSE.

produced my passport. It was examined and Immediately pro-
nounced ' Buono ;' and I was invited with much civility to enter
the office. There was no door communicating with the pier
on the water side, and as it was some distance round, through a
court, to reach the front entrance, a chair was lowered from one
of the windows, on which I mounted ; while several hands were
stretched out to help up the American cavalier, or officer, or
citizen, (or whatever else he might choose to answer to,) and a
moment after I was lifted into the room of audience. The
company T found there consisted of the chief-officer, (a baron,)
and two or three assistants ; also, a reverend padre and several
gentlemen, who seemed to be lounging there without any fixed
object. I was greeted by them all very cordially, and being
pressed to remain till the consul could be sent for, — for whom
a messenger was immediately despatched by the baron, — 1
took a seat and entered into conversation.

I was asked the news, particularly in relation to the United
States, the number and present disposition of our ships of war
in the Mediterranean, and some fine compliments were paid to
our marine. The baron pronounced our national ships superb ; —
(' magnifico ' was the term he used,) — and regretted that they
did not oftener touch at Syracuse. He had known Commo-
dores Decatur, Macdonough, and others, and was sorry to learn
that the first was dead. The company all expressed the hope
of seeing the North Carolina in the harbour of Syracuse, before
her return to the United States. They told me that a number
of my countrymen, who had died in the old Tripolitan war, were
buried in a cemetery not far distant, and that the spot was re-
garded with great respect.

The American consul, — Signor Nicosia, a native of Syra-
cuse, — was not long in making his appearance, and in arranging
matters to get a pass for my baggage with as litde inconvenience
to myself as possible. He introduced me to an English gen-
tleman who has resided here for several years, and who
kindly lent his services to expedite my setdement on shore.
We put off to the brigantine, whither the custom-house inspectors

PORT OFFICERS— AN INTERVIEW. 287

had already gone ; my keys were given up, but the examination
was a mere form. The trunks were all that were opened ;
nothing was disturbed or displaced in them, and my valises were
not inspected at all. The whole business was finished in two
minutes ; no charges were made, and money which I offered
to the underlings, was actually refused.

Among my luggage was a box which had been put under my
care for a lady in Syracuse, to whom I had also an introductory
letter. I had reason to believe after I took charge of it, that the
box contained something contraband ; and knowing that my
own trunks would not bear too rigid an inspection, on account of
sundry books and pamphlets, heretical alike in politics and re-
ligion, I felt some uneasiness to ascertain how they would pass
muster. I have mentioned the good fortune of my own effects,
and as for the box it fared equally well. It so happened that
the principal officer, charged with the inspection of the vessel,
was a brother of the lady to whom it was addressed. He smiled
on making the discovery, and probably his dispositions were not
lessened to grant me every reasonable indulgence in his power.
Be this as it may, though I had reason to expect considerable
embarrassment on entering the port, (particularly, as the Neapo-
litan consul at Malta threw difficulties in the way of my coming
here at all, on the ground of my being a republican of the modern
school,) yet from all the offices, — Health, Police and Custom,
— I received the most obliging and civil treatment ; and the
forms of examination in each department were the lightest
possible.

These preliminaries being adjusted, I was conducted to a
house where lodgings had been already bespoken, and if inferior
to those I left in Malta, they certainly prove much more com-
fortable than any I expected to find in Syracuse. I was hardly
fixed in my quarters, when a note was brought me from a
fellow-lodger, inclosing a card of address and desiring my com-
pany in his rooms. It was Capt. B — , of the royal navy. He
had arrived from Palermo a few hours before me, and had

288 SYRACUSE.

been travelling five days on a mule. The distance is one hun-
dred and fifty miles. He represented the roads as shocking,
and much of the country through which he journeyed, as rude
and depopulated. Altogether, it was a rough jaunt, and had
brought on a smart fit of the gout, which he offered as a
sufficient apology for not calling himself upon me. I found
him swathed in flannels, having his legs bolstered upon a chair,
and certainly looking in bad plight, something like a disabled
hulk, to which he facetiously compared himself. A table was
before him spread with a dessert of fruit and wine, and indicating,
as I thought, the ruling passion strong in pain ; but I was glad to
change my opinion during the interview, and to believe that to
whatever cause he owed his arthritick complaints originally,
their present recurrence was really ascribable to the fatigues of
his ' forced march ' across the island.

I respect the philosophy of a man who can rally spirits to jest
under an attack of the gout. The captain had all this, and he
struck me as a pleasant and gentlemanly man, possessed of a
liberality not always found in his countrymen in the same pro-
fession. He introduced the subject of the late war, spoke jocu-
larly of the English defeat at New Orleans, and expressed in
strong terms his sense of the naval valour and commercial enter-
prise of the people of the United States. Of course, I was not
behind him in suitable compliments by way of exchange. For
much as I dislike the government of England, and its selfish,
narrow and jealous policy in relation to other powers, particularly
to America ever since its independence, no one can withhold
from the English character generally, and from many of the
institutions and more of achievements of the country, the homage
which is due to preeminent national merit.

The captain informed me that he was appointed to the com-
mand of his majesty's ship, Chanticleer, but was ignorant where
he should find her, whether at Malta or Corfu. I was able to
satisfy him on this point, as I had seen her in the harbour of Va-
letta on the afternoon of my sailing, and had left the commander

CHARACTERISTICS. 289

whom he was ordered to supersede, in snug quarters at Vicaiy's.
An English cutter belonging to Malta having touched here this
morning, Capt. B. departed in her, much to my regret.

There is something very singular in the composition of an
Englishman's character. His distrust of strangers is proverbial,
but it is a distrust directed quite as much against his own coun-
trymen as foreigners. Indeed, 1 have generally perceived when
Englishmen have fallen in my way, that the shyness and reserve
which they would maintain, so long as they supposed that I was
one of their countrymen, would relax on finding me to be a
foreigner. While abroad, they commonly exhibit a cold and
repulsive exterior which is anything but prepossessing. There
is a certain moody, clouded and sulky look, which they bear
about with them, that seems to indicate a dissatisfaction with
everything they see. I have had pretty good opportunities of
ascertaining the impressions produced by travelling Englishmen
on the continent. In 181 7, on an extensive tour through France,
Holland, Switzerland, and in Germany, I met them everywhere ;
but I am sorry to say, that they were by no means generally
popular among the people they visited. A Parisian or a Gene-
van could not relish the scornful air with which they walked the
streets of their respective cities, and his dislike would be fre-
quently muttered as they passed. But I believe, after all, that
it is the manner only which needs correcting. An Englishman
has a good heart. It is only encrusted with a rough and un-
promising rind. Remove that, and his social temperament is
found to be of sterling sort. He becomes a warm, generous,
and devoted friend, yielding to none in sincerity, constancy and
the most solid worth.

But I must return from this episode, to speak of the men and
things of Sicily. Leaving my English acquaintance last eve-
ning, and having despatched a light repast, which was served
with promptitude, and rendered more agreeable by contrast with
the cold provisions which my baskets had furnished on ship-
board, I was glad to betake myself to my chamber. The eve-
ning was raw, and I had requested a fire, but was told that
37

290 SYRACUSE.

there was no apartment in the house, besides the kitchen,
provided with a fireplace. The floor of my chamber, like all
the other rooms, was of stone. As there was no carpet, I asked
for some substitute to be placed by my bedside, and with
difficulty a small mat and a rug were procured. The latter
proved to be a green breakfast table-cloth. The bedstead w^as
of iron, like those in universal use in Malta. The bars, being
made no larger than the legs of a common chair and painted
green, resembled a light frame-work of wood scarcely strong
enough to support a baby's weight. This kind of bedstead has
the advantage of cheapness and durability. In Malta the price
of the best is only from eight to ten dollars, and a good one
would outlast several generations. It is very serviceable in these
warm climates in offering no convenient nooks for vermin, as
bedsteads after our fashion, if transported here, assuredly would.
How one feels reclining on an iron couch in a smart thunder
shower, with the consciousness of so many metallic conduc-
tors about him, I cannot say. As it was, I enjoyed last night
the luxury of rest in a sleep too deep to admit of dreams, and
arose fresh this morning, for the sights and toils of a busy and
crowded day.

In undertaking my descriptions of Syracuse, I shall commence
with nearest objects, which naturally attracted attention first, and
shall aim to follow out the narrative of incidents in the order in
which they occurred.

The house in which I am lodged fronts on a square, the only
one in the city worthy of the name, and the buildings which sur-
round it are fast dilapidating. Just opposite, is a large mansion,
the property of a baron. Adjoining the Albergo on the left, there
is a still greater structure. One half of it is used as a theatre,
the other as a town-hall. Next comes the cathedral of Santa
Lucia, and then the palace of the bishop. A few other edifices,
— one a convent, another a church, and the rest, private
houses, — complete the buildings on the square. Like every
ihing else in the city, they have a wasting appearance.

CATHEDRAL SQUARE — GENERAL VIEW. 29 1

This square is called the Cathedral Piazza, in compliment to
the metropolitan church of Santa Lucia. Each of the principal
cities and most, if not all, the considerable towns, of Sicily, have
severally a patron or patroness, par eminence, in the sainted
fraternity. Sta Lucia is the divinity here, Sta Rosalia at
Palermo, Sta Agadia at Catania, and Madonna Maria della
Lettera at Messina. ^^

The mansion opposite, owned, as I have remarked, by a baron,
is a sad monument of his reckless and prodigal courses. He suc-
ceeded in early life to an ample inheritance, and was reputed one
of the richest nobles in this part of Sicily. When the English
were in possession of the island he affected their manners, fash-*
ions and costly tastes, gave sumptuous entertainments, sported a
grand equipage, kept a numerous stud, and maintained a swarm
of leeches under the name of servants ; and by means of these
suckers, and the help of cards, the table and the turf, he contrived
in the most genteel and expeditious method to post to the end of
his estates. At present, as I am told, he is content to occupy a
few mean apartments on an upper floor of his once lordly
dwelling. The lower rooms are set off in shops, which let for
trifling rents. The general aspect of the building is that of ne-
glect j poverty and decay. Yet the arms and coronet of the
nominal proprietor remain sculptured over the grand entrance of
the court, and on other conspicuous parts of the fabric.

Syracuse is walled entirely round. Reduced to a mere wreck,
it occupies only the island site of the old Ortygia. The fortifi-
cations are irregular, but respectable for strength. The walls in
some places are thirty feet high. The town is connected with the
main-land by several gates and drawbridges. The streets are
mostly dark, narrow and crooked ; one, which was of considera-
ble extent, I actually found by measurement today, to be in width
not twice the length of a common walking stick. Even the prin-
cipal street is but about ten yards wide. There is, however, a
pleasant drive on the ramparts which is continued quite round
the city. It is the only agreeable part of it which I have been
able to discover. Coming into town last evening, I passed a

292 SYRACUSE.

large, rusty looking building, which was pointed out as the gov-
ernor's house. It resembles, with its black walls and iron grated
windows, a huge jail. It stands at the intersection of two streets,
and no dog's kennel could be fouler than the main entrance. A
soldier was standing sentry. He had more need of a smelling
bottle, than a cartouch-box.

The population of Syracuse is estimated at fifteen thousand
souls. I doubt if a fair census would yield so large an amount
by two or three thousand. The space within the walls, though
limited, appears too great for the wants of the present inhabitants.
Syracuse, on a larger scale indeed, is relatively much the same
shell of a city that Citta Vecchia is, in Malta. Yet anciently,
when besides Ortygia, it embraced the three great divisions of
Acradina, Tyche and Neapolis, it numbered some hundreds of
thousands of people.

In the course of the morning Signor Nicosia called, in com-
pany with a friend from Messina who prides himself on his inti-
mate knowledge of all the antiquities of this interesting shore ;
and with this double escort I set forth, to explore the curious
remains, intra muros. We began with the cathedral of Santa
Lucia, — not because it is a Catholic church, but because it was
formerly a pagan fane. It was no other than the famous temple
of Minerva, the erection of which dates almost from the founda-
tion of Syracuse. For twentyfive hundred years it has never
ceased to be used as a place of worship of some sort, and its
pavement has been trod by the feet of myriads of votaries.
The temple is still, as of old, dedicated to a female divinity,
— Saint Lucy having become the residuary legatee of all the
rights, privileges and appurtenances of the discarded heathen
goddess.

If the accounts given of the ancient magnificence of this struc-
ture may be depended on, it was inferior to few pagan temples
in wealth and splendor. It was enriched with beautiful
sculptures, paintings and portraits ; and until the time of Verres,
it was adorned with gates of gold, ivory and bronze. On the
summit of the pile was placed the polished shield, on losing sight

TEMPLE OF MINERVA — MUSEUM. 293

of which, mariners were accustomed to throw their offerings of
honey, flowers and ashes into the sea. And it is supposed
that the famous meridian of Archimedes stood on the same part,
the ' fastigium,' of the building.

Outside of the temple I observed three curious old columns.
The front wall of the building itself is composed partly of an
ancient row of Doric pillars, twenty four in number, but having
their intercolumniations filled up, they look more like pilasters
than solid columns. The effect is bad and the taste vicious.
They stand inside of a clumsy facade. The entablatures and
much of the original walls, roof and other parts of the edifice
remain, and they exhibit great strength. The chapel assigned to
the tutelary genius of the temple in modern times, is very rich.
Her statue is made of silver. I remarked a baptismal basin of
great size and value. It was a marble vase with Greek inscrip-
tions, and supported by several small images of lions in bronze.
Its antiquity is undoubted. It was dug up among the ruins of
the neighbourhood. — The general aspect of the structure, aside
from the venerable associations connected with it, is displeasing.

From the cathedral we went to the Museum. It belongs to the
city corporation. The collection is not large, but it boasts a few
antiques of great value. Among the marbles are a colossal bust
of Jupiter Liberator, a statue of Apollo, and another, a smaller
one, of ^sculapius with the usual emblem of the serpent. But
the most precious object by far, is a statue of Venus, known as
the Landolina. It is justly celebrated. The tournure and polish
of the limbs are exquisite. The bosom is almost heaving. The
goddess is represented in nudity, with the exception of a robe
which she is gathering up before her with one hand, but which
reaches no higher than her middle. With the other hand
she is supposed to be holding a screen before her bosom, but
that appendage has long since been lost. At her feet is a muti-
lated dolphin. The head of the statue is wanting ; yet with all
these injuries and losses it is a superb remain, and vies with the
three famous Venuses, — the Calipygean,Capitoline and Medi-
cian, — at Naples, Rome and Florence.

294 SYRACUSE.

Ill the museum are basso relievos of various heads or full
lengths, sarcophagi, (one of them very large,) sepulchral tablets
with Greek inscriptions, funereal urns, lachrymatories, ancient
lamps, medals, amphorae and paterae. Several of the latter are
storied with characters in Greco-Sicilian. These were all
found in the neighbourhood of Syracuse.

We went next to the Chiesa di San Filippo, to inspect a sub-
terranean Bath, the entrance of which is through the church.
We descended by a spiral staircase to the depth of 'forty or
fifty feet, and entered a kind of crypt, where was a reservoir of
the most limpid water fed by some hidden spring. Adjacent to
the bath is a chamber of considerable dimensions, hewn with
great regularity from the solid rock. It is lined with a row of
seatSj which are likewise cut from the native stone, but ap-
pearing much worn, partly, it is probable, on account of long
detrition by moisture. The discoverers of a fountain in such
a,' place, as well as the builders of the bath, are certainly entitled
to credit on the score of ingenuity. ^^

The bath was not the only object of curiosity connected with
the Chiesa San Filippo ; at least, so thought the priest in atten-
dance. Every Catholic church has something of real or fancied
value, — a shrine, a picture, or a relic, — appropriate to itself.
The spiritual wealth of San Filippo is made up of the bones of
two saints, Thraso and Saturninus, said to be brought from Rome
and found in the Via Salaria. They are preserved in a large
casket under the altar. It was opened for my inspection, but I
cannot say that I was particularly gratified with the spectacle.
If my faith had been sufficiently strong in the identity of the
head pointed out as Thraso's, to have allowed me to suppose
that it was the Christian hero's, whom Valerius saw contending
nobly on the arena of the Flavian amphitheatre, the interest
raiight have been of another sort and something magnified.

I was glad to hasten thence 'to the classic Fountain of Are-
th'usa. This famous spring, celebrated from remote antiquity,
has other pretensions to consideration than the attractions which
it owes to the muse. It it a wonderful fountain in itselfj gushing
up with great copiousness near the sea, and forming a respecta-

FOUNT OF ARETHUSA — ALPHEUS, 295

ble rivulet from its very source. It rises in a grotto naturally
arched with a firm roof of stone, so strong that the outer street
of the city, a sort of boulevard, is carried directly over it. The
spot is. not farther fi'om the sea, in a straight line, than twelve
or fourteen yards. The current pours over a rocky ledge into
a circular pool, whence it issues by a winding course, tumbling
and foaming as it goes, till reaching the sea-wall, when it leaps
headlong into the briny deep. The w^aters at their source are
exceedingly clear and fresh, but they are not permitted to retain
their purity even to the end of their short and rapid course.
Anciently, it was venerated with divine honours, and a company
of nymphs was specially set apart to guard it. Now, it is daily
profaned by another set of personages, the common laundresses
of Syracuse, who make no scruple to wash their ' lots ' of clothes
in its waters. In and about the Fount and stream, we saw be-
tween forty and fifty dames and damsels of all ages from
sixty down to sixteen, who, literally half naked, pursued their
occupations totally careless of observation. Their custom is to
pin their dress up as high as convenience may possibly admit,
then station themselves in the water, which in no case would
reach above their Imees, and wash, and scrub, and laugh and
joke, no matter who sees, or hears or may be passing. Of
course, they made no scruple of walking in and out, in all this
dishabille, just as their humour or employments suited. Poor
Arethusa ! alas, that thy virgin modesty, which shrunk from the
amorous embrace of a river-god, and which was sung and ad-
mired by bards of yore, should not shield thy chaste fount in
this degenerate age from such dishonour and desecration !

It is a curious fact that another copious spring rises from the
bottom of the harbour, at some distance from the shore, with so
much force that the water retains its freshness almost to the very
surface. The position is marked by little eddies and bubbles
always distinguishable in calm weather ; and even when the har-
bour is ruffled with winds, the water which is drawn up from
a little beneath the surface, and just over the site of the spring, is
found sufficiently pure for drinking.

296 SYRACUSE.

As the second fountain lies in the direction towards Greece, it
has been seriously thought by many to justify the poetical con-
ceit oftlie ancients, that the river Alpheus, after flowing through
Elis in vain pursuit of the coy Arethusa, then disappearing under
the sea and continuing his course for five hundred miles, rises in
this place to join the fugitive nymph. "^ For it is deemed equally
heterodox to dispute the tradition, either that the submarine
fountain is the Grecian Alpheus, or that the Syracusan Arethusa
is the same with that of Elis. In support of these opinions it is
alleged that leaves and flowers, natives of Greece, have risen on
the surface of the Sicilian spring ; and that a golden cup, woaat
the Olympic games and thrown into the Elian Arethusa, was af-
terwards brought up by this at Syracuse. Strabo devoted a page
to a grave discussion of the philosophy and likelihood of the tale.

Few fountains have rivalled Arethusa in renown. Besides
the notice which Strabo takes of it, it is mendoned by Pliny and
Lucan, Virgil and Ovid among the Romans ; and at an earlier
period, it figured in the sweet pastorals of Theocritus and Mos-
chus. It was dedicated in remote times to Diana, and a magni-
ficent temple was erected to the goddess in its immediate
neighbourhood.

On our walk back, I was shown the Casino, or conversa-
zioni room, a place of resort for Syracusan quid nuncs, some-
thing like our Insurance offices. The apartment occupies the
ground floor of a building, in front of which a row of Theban
pillars has been set up. They are among the remains of the
ancient magnificence of Syracuse, and were brought from Egypt
probably several centuries before the Christian era. The shaft
of each column is formed of a single massive block of granite.

* ' Alphaeum fama est hue Elidis amnem

Ocullas egisse vias subter mare ; qui nunc
Ore, Arethusa, tuo Siculis confunditur undis.'

JEn. vv. G94— 6.
Alpheus, as old Fame reports, has found
From Greece a secret passage under ground,
By love to beauteous Arethusa led;
And mingling here, they roll in nuptial bed.

Dry den.

ARCHIMEDES — A JAUNT. 297

In the neighbourhood I saw a number of mutilated pillars, most
of them prostrate and all of great antiquity. Indeed, fragments
of columns, broken marbles, entablatures and other venerable
relics are strewn through die city. They are worked up as
materials in various modern edifices, and used for repairs
on the walls.

The memory of Archimedes appears to be universally ven-
erated in Syracuse. From the familiar but respectful mendon
made of him, he seems to have belonged to an age as recent as
that of Franklin ; and one is almost tempted in meeting with an
aged Syracusan to ask, if he did not remember seeing the philo-
sopher in his youth. At any rate, the impression left by his name
here is more vivid, apparently, than that associated by us with
Franklin. The walls of the conversazioni room are covered with
pictures of his mechanical exploits. One is very spirited,
and represents his lifdng, with his famous levers and grapples, the
galleys of Marcellus from the water, and then sinking, or
dashing them against the rocks.

At two, P. M., in a curricle and pair, politely placed at my

disposal by the baron M , and accompanied by tne consul,

1 proceeded to visit some of the antiquides in the environs.
Near the gates we were joined by two friends, who had
likewise undertaken to lend their services as ciceronis in the
interesting little tour. Every Syracusan seems to claim the
merit of a conoscente in whatever illustrates the ancient history
of his city and state ; and in poindng out to strangers the curi-
osities of olden umes, he apparently takes great pleasure.
The secret is, that in the life of comparative idleness which he is
compelled to lead, he is thrown upon the past. The offspring
of a decayed but illustrious race, he lives upon the merits and
honours of his ancestors. He glories in the Syracuse which
was, rather than in that which is.

In passing from the town, we crossed over four drawbridges,

and through five barriers of gates. Great pains have been taken

to strengthen the fordfications on the land side, and in this part

they have certainly an imposing appearance. Yet the town^ I

298

SYRACUSE.

make no doubt, might be breached with little difficulty on any
other quarter, — except, possibly, the castle point, — and by
such an opening, a storming party, landing from boats under
cover of a supporting fire, might gain a lodgment within the
walls. Time itself is doing the work quite as surely, though
more gradually ; for the defences of Syracuse generally are
sinking into decay. It is worthy of remark, that most of the
guns have been removed from the ramparts and the remainder
have been dismounted, since the Carbonari insurrection. The
reason assigned is the weakness of government, and a fear, very
natural, lest in another revolutionary movement, the cannon of
this post might be turned against itself.

We entered first on the site of the ancient Acradina. It was
one of the four grand divisions of Syracuse, — Ortygia, Tyche
and Neapolis, being the names of the others. To these, some
topographers have added a fifth, called Epipolae ; but it was
more properly a populous suburb, extra moenia. Acradina
alone once numbered four hundred thousand inhabitants ; now,
it is desolate of habitations. A few peasants cultivate the soil,
which formerly was covered with lordly and luxurious dwellings.

This district is chiefly uninclosed. I was struck with the
earliness and freshness of advancing vegetation. The soil and
climate seem alike kindly, and the verdure at this season is
peculiarly beautiful. But to me, there was something melan-
choly in contemplating the green and variegated mantle of
spring, thrown over a spot once teeming with life and resounding
to the hum of a busy and joyous population. The gayness of
such a vesture looked wholly out of place. It was as a robe
assumed and worn in mockery.

The plain is sprinkled with trees of beautiful varieties.
Am6ng them, I remarked the almond and apricot in full blos-
som, the fig putting forth its tender leaves, the green olive, the
tall crested date, the lemon, citron, and orange, — several of
them bending with golden fruit. We passed some vineyards,
the canes of which were duly arranged for the coming season,
to aid the young shoots and tendrils in climbing. In a few other

SUBURBS — PHILOSOPHER'S TOMB. 299

spots, flocks of cattle and sheep were quietly grazing. Asses
laden with immense panniers, and straggling priests, peasants
and soldiers, were occasionally met on the highway. The
common people are in the habit of bearing very large burdens
on their heads. If they be as weighty as they are bulky, the
wonder is, how they can sustain them.

At some distance on our left, there was a stately aqueduct
with ivy-clad arches, striding like a giant across the waste, and
bearing an exhaustless supply of crystal waters to the reser-
voirs on the island. A picturesque scene was exhibited in one
place around two old wells, the solid stone curbs about the
mouths of which, and the antiquated drawing apparatus seemed
to mark an age coeval with the fallen city. Men. and women,
sheep and goats, mules and asses, were huddled promiscuously
about them. There was much of noise and stir and activity,
and from the confusion going on, a strife might be apprehended,
like that in more primitive times between the herdsmen of
Abraham and of Lot. But not staying to see the issue, we
drove from the plain of Acradina and crossing a corner of the
old quarter of Tyche, entered the district of Neapolis, or the
New City. Alas, neither city, town, nor village, — new or
old, — and scarce a solitary human dv/elling, can be found
throughout its extensive area.

The road winding up a gentle slope at length intersected
another, called the Street of Sepulchres, from its leading in a
narrow defile between hills faced on either side with ancient
tombs. Near the entrance of this passage, and about one
hundred yards from the spot traditionally remembered as the
place of the Agragian Gate, stands the tomb of Archimedes.
The locality agrees very Well with the description given of it by
Cicero. The ancients were in the habit of burying their dead
without the walls of their cities ; and the sepulchres of Syra-
cuse came up to its very gates on this quarter. ' There is,'
says the Roman orator, ^ close by the Agragian port, a vast
number of tombs. Examining them with care, I perceived a
monument a little elevated above a thicket, whereon was

QQQ SYRACUSE.

inscribed the figure of a cylinder and sphere. Immediately I
said to the Syracusan nobles who attended me, That this must
be the tomb of which I was in search.' ^^

We alighted to take a nearer view of it. In front, is a nar-
row strip of cultivated, unfenced ground, and just at the entrance,
a few brambles and rank weeds are growing. The tomb is
excavated from a native bed of rock, the face of which, natu-
rally projecting, is shaped about the opening into a rude Doric
front, with pilasters and a pediment. No traces of the inscrip-
tion are visible, nor is this to be wondered at, for even in the
time of Cicero, the characters were partially worn away. The
entrance of the tomb is sufficiently high to allow a person of full
stature to walk in, without stooping. The interior is of mode-
rate dimensions. It is truly ' The dark and narrow house.'
In a recess on the right, large enough to receive a modern lead
coffin, the remains of the philosopher are supposed to have been
laid ; but the sarcophagus, if any there were, has long since
disappeared. On the opposite side, are full-length receptacles
for bodies ; and fronting the entrance, there are smaller depos-
itories, cut like the others from the solid rock, and adapted for
urns, or the coffins of children. The tomb appears to have
been the family sepulchre of Archimedes ; but the ashes of the
human forms, which once filled its niches, have for ages been
dispersed to the four winds.

The hill, at the foot of which this tomb has been opened, is a
vast ledge of rock slightly covered with shrubs and grass. Fol-
lowing the path at its base, I perceived a great many other
tombs yawning from its sides, the ' magna frequentia sepulchro-
rum,' spoken of by Cicero, The street of sepulchres is fitly
named ; and the spectacle it offers excites in the bosom a train
of solemn emotions. Not one of the tombs throughout the long-
drawn range on either hand retains the bones or even the dust
of its ancient occupants. They are all open, despoiled and
empty. We talk of the fidelity of the grave ; but what can be
more faithless ? If not invaded by the hand of cupidity and
violence, the elements force open its prison doors, and the ashes

SEPULCHRES — LATOMI^. 301

committed to its trust are suffered to escape. The tenements
of the dead are no more permanent possessions than those of
the living. Neither pyramids, catacombs, nor mausoleums,
neither tumuli nor cairns, raths nor barrows, are secure from
intrusion, and spoliation. What retreat for the dead could seem-
ingly be more safe than one of these cells hewn from a rockj
when the stone, as at the first, was rolled to its mouth, and was
sealed and made fast ? Yet none of them have proved inviolate ;
and though the bodies originally consigned to them were thought
destined to rest in their ' narrow beds,' till the heavens be no
more, their decomposed and separated particles have entered
into new combinations with innumerable other substances, aeri-
form, vegetable or animal. And many generations of the dead
might have been successively accommodated in the self-same
spots. The mole of Adrian, and the pyramid of Cheops are
standing witnesses that the utmost anxiety and sedulousness of
mortals to secure places of undisturbed repose for their ashes,
are unavailing ; nay, that they are the surest means of defeating
the builders' aims. The safest sanctuary of the dead, if any
may be called secure, is the lone and forgotten grave of a poor
Indian, in the depth of some pathless forest.

We proceeded to the Latomiae. The place so denominated
is the hollow or bed of an immense quarry, whence the stone is
supposed to have been taken for the structures of Syracuse.
The first impression which a sight of it produces, is like that of
viewing a vast pile of scattered ruins. An eminence of considera-
ble elevation and ample circuit has been hewn down by the exca-
vations, but leaving on most of the sides an irregular line of the
native rock, to serve as an impregnable wall to the inclosure.
In the area, some insulated masses are seen of the original
quarry, one of which is comparatively lofty, and on the top of
it a tower was formerly erected. A remnant of a staircase is
still visible near the summit. So effectually are the Latomiss
guarded by the lofty natural barricade about them, that in the
days of the Syracusan tyrants they were used for a prison. The
Athenian army which surrendered under Nicias, was confined

302 SYRACUSE.

in them, and, according to Diodorus, the sufferings of the cap-
tives were so severe as to make the fate of their brave but un-
fortunate general, who was barbarously put to death, seem
merciful by contrast. This event happened four hundred and
thirteen years before the Christian era, and shows the great
antiquity of the Latomiag.

The famous grotto, called the Ear of Dionysius, makes a part
of these extraordinary works ; but it has been formed in an angle
separate from the main body, and is altogether unique in its
plan, and style of construction. It is a deep, gloomy cavern,
which has been wrought out with amazing ingenuity as well as
labour from very hard rock. The entrance, — through a pre-
cipice perfectly steep, — resembles the doorway to some old
Cathedral. The face of the rock is clothed with luxuriant
natural creepers, which would give the opening a romantic ap-
pearance, if there was not something in the looks of the cavern-
gloom almost awful. We explored its recesses with the light
of tapers.

The ground plan is sinuous, not unlike the letter S. The
roof is vaulted, approaching the style which architects call pointed,
and retaining a certain Gothic feature like the form of the en-
trance. The surface of the walls was made perfectly smooth,
and has undergone no change. The cavern is one hundred and
ninety feet in length, measured on a curve line equi-distant from
the sides. In width it varies from iwentyfour to thirtysix feet, and
in height from sixty to seventy. It terminates in an elliptical
bend. About half way up the cavern on the right, there is an
opening to a smaller grotto. Its area is about one tenth of the
outer one, and the height of the walls thirty feet. The com-
munication is by a passage rather broad, but it might be barri-
cadoed ; and if the popular notion be correct, that the Ear of
Dionysius was built by the tyrant for a prison, this smaller
apartment might have served as the inner ward, — a dungeon
doubly guarded.

Extraordinary as is the height of the main cavern, it was
originally greater. There has been a gradual filling up of the

EAR OF DIONYSIUS. 303

bottom by the wash of earth, leaves and pebbles from without, but
to what depth is not ascertained. Near the top of the cavern, on
the right of the entrance, is a small chamber. The opening is in
the external front of the rock. Whether a secret passage for-
merly led to it is not known, but at present it is inaccessible unless
by ladders, or ropes let down from the brink of the precipice.
Between the chamber and the cavern a hole was formerly bored,
by order, it is said, of Dionysius, who according to the legend,
used to station himself in the little apartment for the purpose
of hearing the conversation which passed among his prisoners.
The tympanum, or focus of sound, was just opposite the cham-
ber. I observed a singular groove in the roof of the rock
running from that point the entire length of the cavern. It is cut
with great regularity and smoothness. Its course is not level,
but it waves or undulates along the roof, preserving at the same
time a reference in its line of direction to the curving sides of the
grotto. This groove is supposed to have been contrived as a
conductor of sound. The cavern itself is constructed on a plan
generally analogous to the form and symmetry of the human
ear, and thence has been derived its immemorial appellation.

Its echo is astonishing. The faintest whisper may be heard
in any part of it. In common conversation the sound of the
voice comes back in heavy intonations. We tried, in several
ways, the reverberative power. A paper was gently torn by one
of the gentlemen at the upper extremity of the cave, and not-
withstanding the extent and sinuosity of the passage, the sound
was plainly heard by the others standing without the entrance.
A pistol was fired, and the report was like the discharge of an
eight-and-forty pounder.

There is no doubt that the cavern was specially formed for
conducting and augmenting sound ; but whether it was contrived
to enable the cruel tyrant who has the merit of planning it, to
hear from his secret apartment the conversation of his prisoners,
has been doubted. It is alleged in disproof, that if two or more
voices speak at the same time, only a confused clamour is pro-
duced. This, which is true below, might not have happened,

304 SYRACUSE.

— at least so sensibly as to be an inconvenience, — to an ear
placed at the orifice in the watch-chamber. The tyrant may
have been in the habit of only imprisoning a very few subjects
at once, and those of whom he was most suspicious ; and as
they would not be likely always to speak at the same time, and
any two, at least, would naturally converse without mutual inter-
ruption, enough might be easily gathered by the royal eave's-
dropper to help him make up his mind respecting his prisoners'
characters, plans or dispositions. Long concurrent tradition, in
the absence of positive testimony of a contrary nature, should
have considerable weight in determining what the objects of the
projector of the cavern really were. Those who deny the
vulgar opinion, admit that in remote times the cave was used as
a prison ; but they assert that it was only appropriated as a re-
ceptacle for the Cyllirii, or dregs of the Sicilian populace.
Whatever was its original purpose, it is certainly one of the most
curious wonders extant of human ingenuity and effort.

Adjacent to the Ear of Dionysius, there is a long dark range
of cellular excavations, at the foot of a wild precipice, and sur-
rounded by grotesque columnar rocks. In one of these gloomy
crypts, I found a family living, or rather buried alive. They
were employed in the manufacture of salt-petre. In a half-sub-
terranean corridor, hard by, a company of twine-makers were
busily at work. We were not so fortunate as Brydone, in
starting a poor porcupine.

The Latomiae abound in a variety of the most romantic and
picturesque scenes. There is a strange heterogenous look in
some of the objects, but they sort well enough with the general
assemblage to produce a mingled pleasing, and majestic effect.
A considerable part of the artificial cliffs is of the extraordinary
elevation of one hundred feet. The vast space which they
inclose is sheltered from almost every wind. It is covered
with a deep bed of earth of surprising richness and fertility ;
and one of the divisions, called the Paradiso, is characterised
by an almost unequalled luxuriance of vegetation. The trees
include figs, almonds, bergamots, olives, pomegranates, lemons,

GREEK THEATRE. 305

and oranges; and the flowering shrubs are numerous and beau-
tiful. The largest part of the Latomiae, called the Palombino, is
owned by the Capuchins. They have a garden, celebrated for
romantic beauty, to which they have given the attractive name
of Selva, i. e. the Grove. As it was two or three miles distant,
and there were nearer objects which claimed attention, I have
deferred my visit thither to another day.

On the other side of the hill, back of the Ear of Dionysius,
are the remains of a Greek Theatre. It would be almost
too disparaging to call them ruins, considering the remarkable
preservation of a great part of the structure. There are five
distinct platforms of seats, arranged in semicircular order.
Attached to these, are convenient galleries ingeniously planned,
and above the whole, there are two apartments which are sup-
posed to have been the places of storage for the tropaea and
moveable decorations of the theatre. Tlie theatre being con-
structed on the sloping side of the hill, the seats are all cut from
the original rock. As they are too low for a convenient sitting
posture, it is not improbable that their upper surfaces were
formerly encrusted with marble ; or they may have been raised
by cushions to the proper elevation. All along the front of one
of the rows, there are inscriptions, on every compartment, in
large Greek characters. They were so well chiselled, that
some of them have completely resisted the tooth of time. It is
presumed that they designate the persons to whom the seats
were specially appropriated. Two of them were ladies of
princely rank, viz. Basilissas PhiHstidos and Basilissas Nereide.
From the circumstance that the head of a personage bearing
the former name and title, has been found on various coins
which represent her in every stage of life, from a youthful beauty
to a matron far advanced in years, Sicilian antiquaries are of
opinion, that she was a queen, who reigned to a very great age.

The theatre is capable of containing from twelve to fourteen
thousand spectators. Its position is most eligible. From the
seats, and particularly the upper platform, a noble view is
39

306 SYRACUSE.

obtained of the sea, harbour, city and adjacent country. When
Syracuse was in its glory, the prospect must have been inex-
pressibly magnificent.

Although no roof was originally fitted to the structure, and
the Greeks and Romans were accustomed to build their theatres
in the open air, we are not to suppose that there was no
temporary covering put up during the times of their plays or
spectacula. There are evident indications that awnings were
used in this of Syracuse ; and such is the excellence of the
climate, — a climate so fine as to occasion the saying, that
there is no day in the year in which the sun is not sometimes
visible, — that only a light screen was ever indispensable.

It is not owing to any modern attention, that the Greek
theatre continues in so perfect a state of preservation. It
appears to be sadly neglected, and even abused. A building
attached to a water-mill has intruded on a part of it ; and a
considerable stream,- diverted from the aqueduct which retains
the name of Dionysius, after turning the machinery, is thrown
into a channel whence it tumbles in a cascade through the
centre of the theatre.

Not far from the theatre there is another very interesting an-
tiquity, the Roman Amphitheatre, and to this I was next con-
ducted. They are both monuments of the tastes and genius of
two distinct people, — the one, of the polished and civilized
founders, the other, of the brave but rude conquerors of Syra-
cuse. The first was the scene of action of the regular and le-
gitimate drama; the second was designed for the show of brutal
and sanguinary sports. In the theatre, the thrilling tragedies of
Sophocles and Euripides, the laughter-moving farces and pun-
gent satires of Aristophanes, and the graceful and elegant come-
dies of Epicharmus and Menander were intended to be played
and exhibited. In the amphitheatre, gladiatorial combats, —
fights of men with men, of men with beasts, and beasts, the
fiercest, one with another, — were waged for the barbarous
gratification of the half civilized Roman. I call him half civil-

ROMAN TASTES— AMPHITHEATRE. 307

ized, for if the character of a people should be determined by
its favourite games, as to a certain extent, it doubtless may be,
the majority of the old Romans were entitled to no better epithet.
Let any one read, in the supplement to Martial's Epigrams, the
Fragments entitled ' De Spectaculis,' and he will learn from
an eyewitness, that the same ferocious amusements which were
cultivated in the untutored times of the Commonwealth, were
sought with avidity by the people in the best days of the Empire.
In addition to the feats of common gladiators, and the terrific
combats of tigers with lions. Martial has celebrated the battles of
bulls and blood-hounds, bears and boars, even of the elephant
and the rhinoceros, performed on the arena of the Coliseum for
the entertainment, alike, of the imperial court and the Roman
populace. Nay, more, he describes with exultation an exploit
which passed under the eye of Trajan, in which a woman
was champion and matched against a lion ! We can hardly
credit him when he adds, that the woman was declared victor.
But that such a combat there was, however it issued, is in-
disputable. And the anecdote proves, that along with a taste
for the fine arts, and a certain polish in the manners of the
citizens, luxury, so far from softening and taming, had only
made more savage the Roman heart, and that under the sway
of a prince proverbially mild, the human species. had exchanged
its nature for that of brutes. ^^

But I must not forget in my reflections the task of description.
I found the amphitheatre, in some respects, in a state of su-
perior preservation to that of the theatre. It is made in the
form of an extended oval. The seats, of which there are four
banks, are considerably worn and defaced ; but the stairs, cor-
ridors and vomitories, the dens for beasts, and cells for gladiators,
are generally so perfect that few repairs would be requisite to
refit the whole. The amphitheatre was partly scooped, like the
theatre, from a natural quarry. Considering the nature of the
rock, a hard calcareous sort, it must have been an exceedingly
difficult work, and its accomplishment for the mere purpose of

308 SYRACUSE.

subserving a popular amusement, is not among the least wonders
which a stranger contemplates in this interesting neighbourhood.
The main access to the amphitheatre was by a vaulted passage
leading under ground from a plateau of the hill above. It com-
municates with a corridor, chiefly excavated from rock, which
surrounds the whole. The corridor is of convenient width, and
about seven feet high. It answers exactly to the gallery, or cir-
cular passage, in modern theatres into which the doors of the
boxes open. From the corridor, flights of steps were con-
structed at proper distances, which led to the different ranges
and divisions of seats. Several of these stairways are scarcely
dilapidated in the least ; the doors only are gone. At opposite
sides of the arena, the avenues are seen whence the combatants,
man and beast, issued to battle. There is a cistern, and near it
a pit, (the Spoliarium,) which was used as a receptacle for
the blood and ordure that might mingle with the sands. The
darkness of some of the dens was almost fearful. It seemed
as though the glare of a lion's eyeballs might still illumine the
horrid gloom, or his growl be heard muttering vengeance on the
unbidden intruder. But the lion has resigned his den, and
the other shaggy monsters of the wood their several prisons, to
a swarm of harmless lizards. These curious little creatures,
distinguished by their bright and varied hues, inhabit, and are
found creeping in, every nook and corner of the ruins. The
arena which formerly was stained with human gore, when the
fated victims ' fought with beasts after the manner of men at
Ephesus,' is now applied to the purposes of husbandry, and
peacefully waves with a crop of flax. And the corridor, along
which the multitudes have rushed with thundering tread in their
eagerness to fill the seats of the mighty amphitheatre, is at pre-
sent made use of by a neighbouring herdsman as a place of
shelter for his flocks during inclemencies of the weather. The
change is a useful one, though not quite so honourable as the
builders of the structure, if they were to rise from the dead,
might claim in compliment to their memories.

RETURN. 30^

On our way back to the city, we made a circuit to visit
some other remains ; but as I have crowded pretty ample details
into the description of one day, I shall defer the residue to unite
them with the account of objects which may offer themselves
for attention hereafter.

CHAPTER XI.

SYRACUSE.

Antiquity of the City. — Wastes of Mortality. — Descent to the Catacombs. —
Early Usages in the Disposal of the Dead. — Remarkable Tomb. — Vespers. —
Convent and Gardens of the Capuchins. — Grave of a Duellist. — Evening on
the Sea-shore. — Fatal Marshes. — Temple of Jupiter Olympius. — Encamp-
ment of Himilco. — Conquests by 'I'lmoleon and Marcellus. — Ancient
Opulence of Syracuse. — Death of Archimedes. — River Anapus. — Fountain
of'Cyane. — Rape of Proserpine — Papyrus. — Second Visit to the Ear of
Dionysius 5 a Theory. — American Cemetery. — Sicilian Habitations. —
Titles. — Political Signs 5 A Contrast — Stagnation of Trade. — Citizens.

Cathedral Square ; March 11. — If a person loves mel-
ancholy let him come to Syracuse. He will here find food
enough to gratify his taste. If he have a passion for moral-
izing, he will be at no loss for matter. Every ruin has a
' tongue ; ' there are ' sermons in stones ; ' and lessons may be
read from a multitude of objects.

I feel as though living among the dead. Syracuse, — I
speak of the territory once covered with the city of that name, —
Syracuse may in fact be considered a vast cemetery ; and in
exploring its remains, I am reminded at every step of treading
upon the dust of seventy generations.

Nor is this an illusion. Syracuse in the times of its greatest
prosperity embraced an area of twenty miles' circuit, and boasted
a population variously estimated at from six hundred thousand
to a million and more of souls. Even after its subjugation by
the Romans, — an event which happened five hundred years
subsequently to its foundation, — it continued an important city,

WASTES OF MORTALITY — CATACOMBS. 311

and its decline in numbers was comparatively slow. The imagina-
tion would vainly weary itself, therefore, in attempting to count
up the myriads of human beings who have lived and died on this
memorable spot.

" An estimate solely of the native inhabitants of Syracuse
would by no means comprehend all of the mighty host whose
dust, in the lapse of centuries, has here mingled with its
parent earth. Armies, great in numbers, — Carthaginian,
Greek and Roman, — which have encamped against it, have
perished not merely by the sword of war, but the fatal diseases
generated from the marshes of the river Anpaus. The legions
ofMarcellus, while beleaguring the city, were frightfully thinned
by the insidious pestilence. The ravages which it committed
among the armies of Carthage were still more terrible. The
numerous forces of the valiant Himilco, smitten with its poison-
ous breath, melted away like snow in summer ; and one hun-
dred and fifty thousand unburied bodies, which they left on the
fatal plains near the gates of Syracuse, were victims to that one
tremendous scourge.

Having secured a portion of the day to myself, the remainder
I devoted to a further inspection of the venerable objects in the
environs. The Catacombs claimed a visit, and thither I went in
company with an intelligent friend. They are substantially
like those of Citta Vecchia, which I have described in a former
part of the Journal. They are immense subterranean excava-
tions from rock, originally hewn out, it has been supposed, for
the purpose of furnishing stones for building ; but a more special
object must have been had in view in determining their compli-
cated plan and vast extension. If the supply of stone was all
that was aimed at, the simple method adopted in the Latomiae
would have been far preferable, and the rocks around might
have continued to yield inexhaustible materials. It is most mani-
fest that they were very early intended, — though the object in
the outset may have been but secondary, — to be used when
completed as places of sepulture for the dead. Certain it is

312 SYRACUSE.

that a multitude almost incredible, both of pagans and Christians,
have been buried in them.

The descent to the catacombs is under the small Gothic
church of St John. It forms a proper vestibule. The living
are thus reminded, on their entrance and exit, of the duties of
religion, and taught that the lessons of mortality, learned below,
should be improved to fit their souls at death for a passage
through the fatal valley.

A few steps brought us to the entrance of this Necropolis. Its
mazes I found quite as intricate as those in the Catacombs of
Malta, and it was necessary to tread with caution in the foot-
steps of the guide. The avenues are narrow, but generally of
sufficient height to allow a person to walk erect. Some
of them are known to extend a mile ; and as they pro-
ceed, they connect themselves with others which branch on
either side, or cross them from every point in the compass. At
many places of intersection, chambers have been made, answer-
ing to little squares in a city. The whole forms a boundless
charnel-house, where death sits enthroned and sways the sceptre
of his inexorable dominion.

The tombs occur at short intervals and line all the passages.
Few of them are single ; in many I counted twelve, and in some,
twenty receptacles of human bodies. They are arranged, side
by side, in cavities carved with great regularity from a common
bed of rock. The largest tombs are from ten to twelve yards
deep.

The sepulchres of Christians were plainly distinguishable
either by the monogram, interpreted ' pro Christo,' or the rude
emblem of a cross, a dove, or a palm-branch. Sometimes a
little coloured phial is found, which is supposed to have held the
blood and to indicate the grave of a martyr.

It is interesting to reflect that in these dark retreats where so
many primitive believers now sleep in peace, they were glad,
while living, to find a shelter from the storms of persecution, and
to practise their rites of worship without fear of molestation.

DISPOSAL OF THE DEAD. 313

That Christianity was introduced into Syracuse as early, at
least, as A. D. 61, we know from the circumstance that Paul's
visit happened at that time, viz. while on his voyage from
Melita to Rome ; and he would hardly have neglected so fair
an opportunity to make known the principles of that faith, which
everywhere else he had preached with unquenchable ardour.
Four years afterwards, the first general persecution of the Chris-
tians began, during which their blood flowed like water, and of
those who^ escaped, many owed their safety to the asylums
offered * in dens and caves of the earth.'

Athough the Catacombs were anciently used by both Pagans
and Christians for the interment of their dead, it was probably in
times remote from one another. The laying up of bodies in
caves, was the original method of disposing of the dead. It was
practised by the Hebrews. It was in vogue in Egypt ; and from
the Phoenicians it seems to have been propagated throughout
the countries which they colonized. The want of natural caves
would soon suggest the plan of artificial ones ; and as stone
must be used in the construction of cities, it was quarried in a
way to secure a double object, — habitations above ground for
the living, and places of rest for the dead. Catacombs, where
made, were accordingly used as common sepulchres among the
Greeks and Romans, of all classes, till the practice of burning was
introduced. Then catacombs were disused ; for all who could
possibly afford the expense of a funeral pyre in honour of their
deceased friends, preferred to adopt it. Their ashes were
gathered up with care and placed in urns, and crypts, for the
burial of bodies, were no longer required. As Syracuse was
founded by a colony of Corinthians, and subjected by the
Romans, — the latter event happening two hundred and tweke
years before the Christian Era, — this general change of custom
must have operated here before the gospel was introduced.
The Christians, however, revived the practice of burial. They
had an abhorrence of burning which they considered supersti-
tious, and deemed the law of nature to be the law of religion,
that dust should return to earth as it was. The catacombs
40

314 SYRACUSE.

offered a vast assemblage of sepulchres ready formed, and thither
their dead were conveyed. ^^

The absurd notion that the human race was originally of
uncommon stature, and that it has been gradually reduced, is
abundantly disproved by the structure of the largest cells for
bodies in the catacombs. Some of them must have been
excavated twentyfive hundred years ago, and yet none are of a
size exceeding the present standard of the human frame. The
remark has not escaped other visiters; and it is suggested by the
circumstance, that in this very neighbourhood, namely, at Capo
Santa Croce, it has been pretended by Fazzello and other Sicil-
ians, that the skeletons of giants have been found.

Not far from the Catacombs, but in a place apart by itself, a
very curious tomb has been lately discovered. We stopped to
examine it during the excursion yesterday. It is close by the
public road and on the brink of a little ravine. It was brought
to light by some workmen, employed in digging earth and stones
for the repairs of a bridge near by. Strange as it may be thought,
it is a beautiful litde apartment. The walls of the tomb are
painted with ingenious Arabesques, the colours of which retain
a remarkable freshness. These are laid upon very smooth
stucco. The floor is tessolated with compositions of terra
cotta. The roof is arched, and altogether the apartment resem-
bles much more a lady's boudoir, or the chamber attached to
some ancient bagnio, than a mansion of the dead. Among the
emblems on the walls are flowers, girdles of money, a hawk,
and a peacock. When discovered, there was only one sarco-
phagus in the tomb. It contained some bones, which on being
touched, and exposed to the air, immediately crumbled. From
the devices on the walls, it is inferred that they were the relics of
a rich votary, or priest, of Juno. A distinguished antiquary of
this city informs me, that he has transmitted to the king, by
special command, an account of the discovery with a minute
description of the ornaments of the tomb.

An hour before sunset, I mounted a horse to proceed to the
convent of the Capuchins. I hoped to have reached it by

VESPERS. 315

vespers, but was disappointed by a circumstance which I had
no reason to regret. Pursuing my ride leisurely, contemplating
the tranquil scenery of the sea and shore, and yielding to a
feeling of melancholy, not unwelcome, inspired by the objects
around, I approached the little convent Maria di Gesu, situated
in a sequestered spot, and shaded by a few old trees. The
chapel doors were open, and I was passing when the first notes
of the organ were struck, which told that the vesper service was
there begun. There was something so sweetly solemn in the
sounds, that I involuntarily stopped to listen. They continued,
and I could not resist the impulse to dismount and enter.

The organ was accompanied with voices of touching melody.
There was no effort for the display of power. It was rather a
subdued and soothing strain, simple and almost sad, more like
a requiem than a chant or chorus. The instrument and choir
were screened, and at times when their tones fell upon the ear
with more than common softness, they seemed to proceed from
a superior region — to come, as though mellowed by distance, —
for the music had less of earth in it than heaven.

A priest of reverend aspect and in befitting robes, officiated
at the altar. The company of worshippers was small, and con-
sisted of the holy brotherhood. The monks were all kneeling,
with their faces turned to the altar, their cowls thrown back,
and their eyes fixed upon the pavement. They were motionless
like statues, but in their looks there was an air of pensive ab-
straction. The decorations of the chapel were chaste and
appropriate. There was nothing ambitious, nothing studiedly
ornate. The pictures were expressive ; and well designed to
heighten the eloquence of the place and worship. One of
them represented the crucifixion. Another, and the most striking,
was a painting of the martyrdom of three primitive disciples,
affectingly depicting their meek and submissive, yet triumphant
looks, — their eyes, beaming with faith and hope, lifted to
heaven ; while in the clouds above, the Virgin was exhibited
with a face of seraphic loveliness, bending upon them a smile
of divine encouragement, holding a cross in one hand, and bearing

316 SYRACUSE.

in the other ' the vial full of odours,' emblematic of ' the prayers
of the saints.' High above the altar, the figure of the mystic
Dove was sculptured, and beneath it the motto in large characters
was written, — ' gloriosus in domo tua.' ^^

I was already deeply impressed with the scene and its solemn
unisons, when looking up, my eye first caught that inscription.
Nothing ever spoke more powerfully to my feelings. My heart
responded to the sentiment which it breathed, and I felt that in
that worship there was indeed the beauty of holiness. I re-
mained till the last note of the music was hushed, till the service
was done, and the fathers prepared to separate. I had been
riveted to the spot, and when at length I was obliged to leave it
and turn from the threshold, it was with feelings of deep regret
that the solemnity so soon had closed. But that scene, that
hour, can never be obliterated from my mind. While I write,
the music still vibrates in my memory. May it continue to
vibrate, and its tones never die !

The sun had set when I reached the convent of the Capu-
chins. It is a solid old fabric of singular form, built on an airy
and commanding situation near the sea, having much the ap-
pearance of a castle, and but little of a monastery. It is moated,
and to enter it, it was necessary to pass a gate and a drawbridge.
These precautions of defence have been needful to guard the
monks against descents of Barbary corsairs. The convent is built
one story deeper, (or higher, as the expression may suit,) than
it appears on approaching it. The basement is then hid, but
on crossing the bridge it is brought into view with the accompa-
niments, not over and above agreeable, of human skulls and
bones ranged against the grated windows. They belonged to
the predecessors of the present inmates of the house, a part of
the basement story being the place of their tombs. I was glad
to turn from this sight to the more refreshing spectacle of a
fountain and some orange trees, which ornament a plat in the
court.

At the door of the convent, I was hospitably greeted. A
monk attended me to the refectory, and pressed upon me the

CAPUCHINS — SELVA. 317

refreshments of wine, olives and bread. While this was passing,
two or three others of the society made their appearance. They
took me, at first, to be a European, and being not devoid of curi-
osity begged to know of what part of the Old world I was a native ?
When I told them that I belonged to another world, namely the
New, the intelligence seemed to surprise them about as much
as if I had said that I came from another planet. They asked
how far it was to America and that part of it, the place of my
birth ? On my replying that it was some four thousand miles
off, and intimating that I had travelled all that distance to pay
them my respects, — ' Gesu Maria, Che maraviglia !' they
exclaimed, ' chi avrebbe pensato !' (How astonishing ! Who
would have thought it !') crossing themselves at the same time,
and repeating a friendly ' Ben venuto ;' (Welcome.) Of course,
they were not slack in plying me with other questions, and con-
tinuing to gaze on their guest with a civil wonder, something as
Columbus may have regarded the natives of St Salvador. But
as I did not visit them for this purpose, I soon intimated a
wish to employ the twilight by a walk in the romantic gardens
attached to their convent. Immediattely a trio of the cowled
fraternity undertook to attend me, and to point out what was
chiefly interesting.

The environs of the convent are truly charming. In point of
sylvan beauty nothing can exceed them. The grounds have
been laid out with no great order, but they are doubly pleasing
from their very irregularity, and a certain cast of wildness in the
scenes. The walks are planted with cypresses of tall, tapering
forms. The choicest fruit trees, and a variety of ornamental
shrubs are dispersed within the precincts, but the most appear
to have rooted themselves accidentally. The soil is a fine, rich
marl, and nature, profuse in life and multiform in loveliness, has
exerted her powers in turning it to the best account. In some
places, she has disported her creative efforts, and wrought with-
out the apparent aid of earth, as though her object was to show
the wonders of her skill in the merest caprices. The rocks are
covered with luxuriant creepers, and garnished with myrtles,

318 SYRACUSE.

coronillas and prickly opuntias. In the crevices of the beetling
cliffs, the arbutus, sumach and broom, — even the cypress and
evergreen oak — have found a footing, and they contrive to grow
and thrive by means most marvellous.

In a part of the Selva, I was taken to an extraordinary set of
excavations, not unlike the Ear and its adjoining caves of Dio-
nysius. The largest cavern is very extensive, and in its general
plan is so analogous to tbe principal grotto of the Paradiso that
it seems to have been either the copy or the prototype. The
monks who attended me maintained that it was the latter, and
they probably spoke, or echoed, the opinion of men much
wiser than themselves. They affirmed that their cave was
originally begun by the tyrant for the purpose, whatever it was,
which he followed up in the famous excavation called the Ear,
in the other division of the Latomiae, and that he abandoned
this first undertaking on account of the looser nature of the
rock or from some other cause, which made it unfit for the
object in view. I had never heard of the Capuchin grotto
before, and the theory was therefore new to me. But, I confess,
there were some circumstances which made the account plau-
sible. The grotto, though very spacious and lofty, is manifestly
unfinished. The rock from which it is excavated is friable, and
the deeper it was worked the more crumbling it appeared.
The opening was first made in the face of a precipice, and in
prosecuting the enterprise the same skill was exercised, evidently,
as in the more successful construction of the Ear of Dionysius.

I have mentioned that in the latter of these remarkable exca-
vations I found a side recess on the right, similar to a prisoner's
cell, or inner dungeon. In the Capuchin cavern, there are
three or four such recesses, and the discovery of them strength-
ens the opinion, which I have intim.ated, that the celebrated Ear
was in reality designed to be a place of incarceration, and that
the tradition of its original purpose is substantially correct. But
I may say more on this subject when I shall have inquired
further, and learned the impressions entertained by Syracusan
antiquaries.

GRAVE OF A DUELLIST. 319

In the course of the search, or rather ramble, my little escort
had been angmented. It had buzzed through the convent that
an American visiter had arrived, and some of the elder monks
bethought themselves of an object which they felt sure must
interest me, and which had probably escaped the memory, if it
was within the knowledge, of the others. This was nothing else
than the grave of a fellow-countryman. Strange it was to hear
of one in such a spot, but no more strange than true. It was
dusk when I was apprized of it. Objects were becoming indis-
tinct, although the moon, now^ near its full, was beginning to
throw its pale light over the landscape. But it only dark-
ened the shadows cast by the deep groves, especially those of the
old stately cypresses. The grave was at some distance. It was
that of a young midshipman who had fallen in a duel many
years ago, when one of our frigates was anchored in the har-
bour of Syracuse ; and as he had perished in no better cause,
I felt not much inclined to deviate, at so late an hour, to the
place of his burial.

The monks, supposing my reluctance to arise from unwil-
lingness to give them trouble, insisted on going with me to the
spot. One of them had provided himself with a flint, steel and
matches ; and to the grave we therefore went. It was .within a se-
cluded nook, in a large cave scooped out from the base of a cliff
in some remote period, the entrance of which would be sufficiently
gloomy by day, but at this hour it was startling. The precipice
w^as clothed with wild vines, which hung low and united with the
tangled underwood beneath. The trees which were grouped
around, waved mournfully to the breeze ; and on the whole, I
w^as glad that I knew my companions, as otherwise meeting
them in such a place and hour, ignorant of their character, I
should have taken them for banditti, and believed that nook to
be their haunt.

Some dry sticks were collected, a spark was struck, and with
the help of our matches, a fire was made. The monks then
lighted a couple of pine torches, and we proceeded to explore
the cave. We had scarcely entered, when an owl, disturbed by

320 SYRACUSE.

the glare of the torches, flitted out and perching on a neigh-
bouring crag, commenced her moan. This roused some others,
and their cries continued at intervals, till we left the spot. On
the wall of the cavern, rudely cut, was the name of the unhappy
youth, whose bones were mouldering in the lone grave beneath, —
one who had fallen a sacrifice to that preposterous, nay atro-
cious practice, which to the disgrace of civilized man, is still
tolerated in enlightened and christian communities, — and who,
had he not perished by the hand of a brother, might have been
spared to be an honour to his profession, and a gallant defender
of his country's flag. There was nothing annexed to the name
but the bare date ' Sept. 18, 1804.' Some weeds had grown over
this part of the inscription. One of the monks stooped to pluck
them away. He was an elderly man, whose benevolent looks
would prepossess at first sight. His long beard, slightly grizzled,
hung upon his breast. As he stooped, the crucifix, appended to
his rosary, dropped on the earth. Another monk held down
his torch at the moment, that I might read the characters on the
stone, more easily. The scene just then was very striking ; —
the figure and attitude of the elder, — his benevolent office, — ^
the crucifix, sign of the Redeemer's mercy, resting upon
such a spot, — the grave and tablet, — the faces of the sur-
rounding group half seen, half shaded by their deep cowls, —
the blaze of torches flashing against the walls of that gloomy
cave, — the whole a painter might vividly portray, but my pen
is unable duly to describe it.

My feelings were solemn when I descended to the Catacombs,
and when I walked the Street of the Sepulchres ; but my soul
was painfully saddened, it was chilled, when I stood by the
duellist's grave, — this tomb of a countryman.

Returning to the convent, I took leave of my kind-hearted
hosts, after reciprocating best wishes, and depositing a more
substantial acknowledgment of their civilities. The Capuchins
are the sworn enemies of mammon, but they never break
friendship with those who, notwithstanding their vows, presume
to leave a piece of money on their table. — I respect them for

EVENING ON THE BEACH. 321

one trait which distinguishes them from the monastic orders
generally, that of being republicans in heart, and essentially such
in practice. In the insurrection of the Carbonari, a main
' spoke in the wheel' was a Capuchin friar, who wrought dili-
gently with his pen, if he fought not with his sword. He
belonged, if I mistake not, to a convent in Palermo.

My ride back from the Capuchins was delightful. The
evening was cloudless and serene. The road followed the shore
of the Mediterranean, whose waves broke with a gentle murmur
upon the rocks. On the margin of a little cove, 1 passed
a company of fishermen. They had kindled a fire on the
beach, the light of which showed their figures to singular effect.
Some were sleeping on the sands ; others were employed in
cooking their evening repast ; one was singing, — albeit, no
Incledon in voice or skill, — and the idle ones from time to time,
would join in the rude chorus. Their boats were hauled upon
the shore, and their fishing apparatus was spread beside them. —
Approaching the city gates and entering the main thoroughfare,
I fell in with a troop of peasants returning with their mules and
donkeys, well burdened, from the labours of the field. At length,
drawbridge, gate and portcullis were passed, and I was once
more within the walls of Syracuse.

March 12. — The day has been abundantly occupied, and
like the two preceding, fraught with interest. I had examined a
large part of the site of old Syracuse, but there were objects and
spots which remained to be seen, and to arrive at them, it was
necessary to take a wider circuit.

At an early hour, a horse was waiting in the court which had
been sent for my use by the Baron of B. A gentleman —
the same who had attended me to the catacombs, and who had
been one of the party to the Greek and Roman theatres, —
kindly offered his services as companion. He was mounted
on a strong mule, an animal which has the credit of surefooted-
ness, but he sadly belied his character in the course of the
excursion ; for in a rugged place, when he was exhibiting his
paces in a clumsy gallop, down he suddenly fell, and both he
41

322 SYRACUSE.

and his rider lay sprawling on the earth. Fortunately, no
injury was suffered, and the tumble was only a humourous
episode.

Leaving the barriers of the town, we entered on a plain
stretching to the south and west, and which setdes in the low
wastes irrigated, not drained, by the rivfer Anapus. We passed
the ground once occupied by the temple of Ceres-Proserpina,
one of the twenty spots which the diligence of antiquaries has
identified as old temple-sites. But of nearly all of them, the
places only can be seen, time having fulfilled on them, w^hat
the Roman armies accomplished more speedily at Jerusalem,
leaving not one stone upon another. We traversed the marshes
by a rough, half-ruined causeway. A few birds w^ere wheeling
their flight over the cheerless tract, and numerous lizards darted
with agility through the rank wild grass. The latter are per-
fectly harmless creatures, though at first sight they look rather
suspicious. They are generally eight or ten inches long, and
the colours of some of them are beautifully diversified. The
marshes are still proverbially unhealthy. In the sultry months,
they continue to send up those pestilent miasms which were
formerly so fatal to besieging armies. It is probable, however,
that in times of peace, the ancient Syracusans were careful to
keep them drained, and thereby to diminish the danger of
their proximity.

We crossed the river by a dilapidated stone bridge, and pur-
suing our route by a diverging path, at length reached an elevated
spot of ground, on which are the few remains of the celebrated
temple of Jupiter Olympius. Few they truly are. Only two
columns are standing, but these are of great size and well
deserving of attention. They are about forty feet high and
range exactly east and west, which t ascertained by compass.
Their tops are mutilated, and their sides much w^orn. Each of
the pillars consists of a base and shaft. The shaft, which is a
single piece, is eighteen feet in girth, and the base is forty four.
The pillars are neither round nor fluted, but shaped into planes,
or sides, sixteen in number. Their bases, which are immensely

TEMPLE OF JOVE — HIMILCO. 323

Strong, were originally plastered, but the stucco is mostly gone.
The distance between the columns is thirtyfive paces. Near
them is a deep cistern, firmly wailed ; but other remains and
appendages of the temple are wanting.

In description, it is not always possible to convey to others
the impressions produced by certain objects, or to make in-
telligible their precise cause, if indeed their reality. It may
seem surprising, therefore, that two such objects as these mutila-
ted columns should be contemplated by a visiter with interest,
or that they should awaken any emotion. But it was not with
indifference that I beheld them. Each is stately in itself, and
doubly so from its position and those associations which cannot be
detached. Standing remote from every human dwelling, — the
surviving monuments of a once stupendous fane, their companions
having fallen, from age to age, around them, — no longer up-
holding with their massy strength a gorgeous roof, but one of them
propping the feeble boughs of a half-withered oak, — marking,
still more J the site now covered with a greensward, which mul-
titudes of votaries have pressed in worship, where victims have
bled and sacrifices have smoked, and priests and hierophants
have officiated, — they are venerable in their aspect, and grand
in their very solitude.

The temple is memorable by other reminiscences. Himilco,
the Carthaginian general who lost his army by a pestilence,
selected it for his head-quarters, pitching his tent and displaying
his ensigns in the very court of Jove. This was deemed a most
daring sacrilege. The same General wantonly despoiled and
profaned the temple of Ceres and Proserpine ; and to strengthen
himself in his positions before Syracuse, destroyed the tombs of
some of its noblest citizens, not sparing the magnificent mauso-
leum of Gelon. All these barbarities were construed into im-
pieties meriting the judgments of Heaven. And when his army
soon after wasted away by the all-devouring plague, it was said
that the insulted shades and the power of the offended gods
interposed to mete out to him and his myrmidons, a righteous
retribution. Livy, in his Twenty fourth Book, and Diodorus in

324

SYRACUSE.

his Fourteenth, have given detailed accounts of these events, the
latter adding to his record as historian, the sage reflections of a
moral philosopher.

The view from the temple eminence overlooks the spot where,
in the following century, the heroic Timoleon made the disposi-
tions of his gallant little corps in that splendid assault on the city
which resulted in its capture along with the defeat of Icetas, and
sealed the final downfal of the tyranny of the younger Diony-
sius. But however brave as a man, or skilful as a general, he
could not have prevailed against such vast apparent odds, unless
he had been stimulated by that best omen of success, a righteous
cause, and unless the perfidious conduct of his antagonist had
raised up among the Syracusans a host of foes, who were eager
to throw open their gates to a meritorious assailant.

The fate of the tyrant Dionysius strikingly exhibited the vi-
cissitudes of fortune. When he succeeded to the government
of Syracuse, the absolute sovereign of a rich and powerful
state, he had at his command an army of one hundred thousand
men, ten thousand horse, and a naval force estimated at five
hundred ships of war. Expelled from his possessions, and an
exile in Corinth, he was obliged in his necessities to keep a
school for support. Cicero wittily remarked, that he chose the
employment that he might continue to be a tyrant, and being no
longer able to command men, that he might still exercise his
authority over boys. ^^

The riches of Syracuse on its conquest, at a much later period,
by the Romans, were immense. Plutarch reports the plunder to
have equalled that of Carthage, whose overthrow was hastened
by the fall of this mighty bulwark. The city, contrary to the
wishes of the brave and generous victor, was given up to the
soldiers for pillage. He strove in vain to divert them from their
purpose, but they were so exasperated at the obstinate siege of
three years, which the Syracusans had sustained, and the terrible
repulses and havoc caused^ from time to time, by the warlike
engines invented by Archimedes, that neither Marcellus nor any
of his officers durst oppose their resolution. Many of the soldiers

MARCELLUS — FALL OF THE CITV. 325

insisted that the city should be burnt and lev^elled with the
ground, and the Roman general thought himself happy to rescue
it from that extremity. An anecdote which Plutarch gives, in
illustration of the humanity of Marcellus, serves at the same
time to convey an idea of the grandeur and beauty of Syracuse
as it had been left by Hiero II. and as it appeared when, a.
few years after, the Roman eagles were planted against it.

The outposts had been carried. Hexapylum, a strong cita-
del, was in possession of the besiegers. Their legions had
entered Tyche, and preparations were made to storm. On the
morning of the destined day, when the trumpets were about to
sound, and the tremendous charge to begin, Marcellus 'surveying,''
says his biographer, * from an eminence, that great and magnifi-
cent city, shed many tears in pity of its impending fate, reflect-
ing into what a scene of misery and desolation its fair appearance
would be changed, when it came to be sacked and plundered
by the Romans.' — It fell ; and in a few hours the prosperity of
that flourishing state whose power and opulence had been ac-
cumulating through five centuries, — in the energetic language
of the historian — ' was no more.' The city, it is true, was not
burned, — it was notraz( d to the ground like Corinth and Car-
thage. It was not destitute of a certain consequence, for its
inhabitants were still very numerous. But the independence of
Syracuse was annihilated ; the sun of its political glory had
forever set.

In addition to other spoils, the most curious monuments of
art, — the paintings and sculptures which adorned the temples
and palaces of Syracuse, — were carried to Italy, and after em-
bellishing the triumph of Marcellus, graced the public edifices
of the capital. The introduction of these created and diffused
a taste for the fine arts among the Romans. Till then, the
citizens had been ignorant of that species of refinement, and
Syracuse had the merit of schooling her conquerors into a sense
of its value and beauties. No longer, alone, the ' temple of
frowning Mars,' in which bloody trophies and the arms taken
from barbarous nations were hung up, Rome became the

326 SYRACUSE.

seat of arts, and the depository of the choicest monuments of
cultivated taste. In a half century more, Carthage and Corinth,
and subsequently to them, Alexandria, Antioch and other illustri-
ous cities added their treasures to the universal storehouse ; and
the mistress of the world attained that magnificence which out-
vied every other capital whether in ancient or modern times.

The fall of Syracuse was therefore in a double sense a most
impoitant era in the history of Rome. But the removal of its
richest ornaments by no means pleased the graver Roman
senators. They blamed Marcellus for introducing among the
youth a fondness for what they deemed mere baubles, and quoted
with approbation the conduct of Fabius Maximus, who on the
reduction of Tarentum, sixty years before, suffered the statues
and paintings to remain, exclaiming, ' Let us leave the Taren-
tines their angry gods.'

But the event most painfully memorable in the conquest of
Syracuse, was the death of Archimedes. Every one, acquainted
with ancient history, knows the story of his fate, or rather the
three versions of it, partially variant, which have been left on
record. All accounts agree that he was killed in the confusion,
consequent upon the sack of the city, and that this great man,
one of the brightest ornaments of human genius, retained the
character of a true philosopher to the close.^^

I find myself riveted to the mount of observation. It is
time to leave it and resume our surveys in another quarter.

Returning to the Anapus, we entered a boat which had been
ordered to be in readiness, and commenced the ascent of the
stream. It divides the unwholesome morasses into two parts,
formerly called Lysimelia and Syraco, from the second of which
the city took its name. It is a narrow river with frequent
windings. It rolls a dark, muddy and sluggish current. The
banks, along the lower part of its course, are lined with canes
and brakes. The canes are of the bamboo species, and are
much used in vineyards for the training and support of the plants.
Further up, the papyrus began to make its appearance. This
celebrated plant I found growing in the greatest luxuriance upon

ANAPUS — CYANE. 327

the banks, and even springing from the midst of the waters ; and
it was the expectation of seeing it, which was among the induce-
ments of tracing the Anapns toward its sources.

Pursuing our course through these obstructions, the boat
sometimes rowed, sometimes pushed, and occasionally cordelled,
we at length reached a curious pool, one of the feeders of this
Cocytus stream. It was the fountain of Cyane. The basin is
circular, twenty yards across, and twentyseven feet deep. The
waters, which are ever springing, are singularly pellucid, and
abundantly stocked widi fish. So clear is the fountain, that the
minutest object could be seen at the bottom, though the soil
being muddy, gives the surface a blackish hue. The margin of
the pool is trimmed with a profusion of aquatic plants, the most
conspicuous variety of which, as before, is the papyrus, shooting
up its green stems to the height of ten or twelve feet, crowned
with a beautiful fibrous tuft of slender filaments.

The fountain of Cyane has an interest independent of its
connexion with the Anapiis. It figures in ancient mythology,
and its waters have been dyed with the blood of the sacrificial
bull, which the Sicilians annually offered on its borders in honour
of Proserpine, and in commemoration of the spot where she
disappeared from the earth. The story is this; — when Pluto
became enamoured of Proserpine, whom he saw gathering
flowers and delighting herself with the beautiful views, delicious
meads and limpid streams of Enna, he made his suit in no
lover-like mood — an art, we may presume, not taught in his
sable dominions, — but rudely seizing her, hurried her away in
his chariot. The nymph Cyane alarmed by her cries hastened
to her succour, and to punish the maiden's zeal, Pluto meta-
morphosed her into this fountain, the waters of which may be
considered as fed by her tears. Opening for himself a passage
in the same place through the earth, he descended with his prize
to Erebus. Ceres, discovering the girdle of her daughter on the
surface of the fountain of Cyane, and learning from the nymph
Arethusa whither she had been carried, went down to rescue
her from the arms of her cruel ravisher. But the cunning god

328 SYRACUSE.

had permitted his bride to walk in the Elysian fields, and pluck
and eat of its tempting fruits, whereby she forfeited a heritage
on earth ; and Proserpine was doomed to remain queen of the
hideous : realm, though, (contrary to the sentiment of Milton's
hero,) she found it worse 'to reign ' in such a place, than else-
where ' to serve ' — a more agreeable spouse.

As for the passage below, we took it upon trust. Neither my
friend nor myself had any particular fancy to explore it, or go
down for the latest intelligence. It was enough for us that our
boatmen had much the appearance of a couple of Charon's
crew, — for in his old age he doubtless finds it convenient to
employ some younger hands, — and the dark current of the
Anapus warranted the suspicion that, besides the tears of the
nymph Cyane, it must receive some accession from the sullen
waters of the river Styx.

Provided with an abundance of the papyrus reeds, w^e re-
traced our course. The fountain, I should observe, — now
called by the unpoetic name of Pisma, — is about six miles distant
from the bay. In no other part of Sicily does the papyrus grow
spontaneously. The largest stems of this curious plant are
three inches thick near the root, and taper gradually to the top.
They prefer to grow in bunches, the clusters being formed from
the young and vigorous suckers constantly springing up from the
extending roots. In some parts they have formed quite a
grove, or jungle. In general, they thrive best by the edge of the
water, provided there be sufficient moisture for bathing the
roots, instead of vegetating from the bottom of the stream. I
saw a few specimens growing actually afloat. When detached
from the parent plant, they succeed in forming a sort of matting
with their roots, which, becoming deeper and broader, in process
of time is converted into a litde buoyant islet.

The papyrus has been growing on this spot for more than two
thousand years. The era of its introduction is referred to the
reign of Hiei'o, who is said to have received it from Egypt as a
present from Ptolemy Philadelphus. It is a little curious that a
plant so famous, which has given its name to the modern ma-

THEORY OF DIONYSIUS' EAR. 329

terial for writing, and on the leaves which it furnished, Theo-
critus very probably traced his beautiful Idyls, and Archimedes
his profound problems, should now be converted to no more
worthy purpose by the Sicilians than that of withes for binding
up their corn. ^^

We returned to the bridge after three hours' absence, and
were glad to leave the barge and resume our former mode of
conveyance. We rode to the Ear of Dionysius, which I wished
to examine again. It struck me, if possible, as more wonderful
than on the first visit. It is indeed a most stupendous and
amazing work of art. There is no mistaking that it was the
labour of a tyrant, and such a tyrant as Dionysius, — one who
held in his hand the resources of a mighty state, whose subjects
were slaves, all moving and acting at his single nod. The
despot, who in the space of twenty days could construct a mili-
tary wall thirty stadia in length, and of the proper height and solid-
ity to defy impression, employing for that purpose sixty thousand
men and six thousand yoke of oxen, — a work, the vestiges of
which remain to this day to astonish the beholder, — such a
man of all others could command and accomplish, at his mere
pleasure, the marvellous excavation to which I allude. ^^

But what was its purpose? — it may still be asked. A
learned antiquary of this city, Signor Poleti, has hit upon a bold
hypothesis, namely, that the cavern was built to serve as a
mighty reverberator of the music performed in the Greek
theatre. In an interview with him this evening, I was more
amused than convinced, by the earnestness with which he
maintained his theory. He concluded, as he began, with de-
claring that the cavern was nothing else than ' una Grotta fatta
artificiosamente per cantarvi musica, perche v' e un bellissimo
eco.'

I have already said that the Greek theatre is very near the
Ear of Dionysius, being built on a back declivity of the same
hill. It is asserted, that between the upper extremity of the
cavern and the nearest part of the theatre, — the Tropaea for
example, — the thickness of the rock is not more than twenty-

330 SYRACUSE.

five Sicilian palms, equal to twentyone feet English ; and
through this rock an ancient communication is supposed to have
existed. In confirmation of such a connexion, Signer P. assured
me that, one day, having taken shelter in the cavern during a
heavy shower, with some friends, they found the rain trickling
upon them from a part of the roof; and they presumed it must
proceed from the crevices of an old aperture toward the side of
the theatre, imperfectly closed. He further cited the instance
of a cave somewhere in Attica, made on a plan similar to this, and
confessedly for the object which he conceives the Ear to have
been solely designed to effect. It is a curious conception, truly,
which transforms this wondrous grotto into a vast organ-pipe, its
walls into a sounding-board, the watchtower of the tyrant, per-
chance, into a music-loft ; — and which strips the cavern of all
the associated gloom entailed by the tradition of ages, — a
gloom deeper than even the midnight darkness which it perpet-
ually wraps in its bosom. In such a place where, as I heard,
the report of a pistol is like the discharge of an enormous
cannon, and its echo is as the roll of deep-toned thunder, what
must be the volume of sound which an instrumental band would
produce ! It has been often said, that there is but a step from
the sublime to the ridiculous. I do not say on which side the
theory proposed should be classed, but only, if it be not with
the former, there is no alternative but one — its reduction to an
absurdity.

My survey of the classic ' locale ' of Syracuse was now
completed ; but there was one spot, totally dissociated in the
character of its interest, which claimed a visit, and which I
could not neglect. It was the garden of the Chevalier Lando-
lina, a retreat beautiful in itself, and dear to an American
as the place which sepulchres the remains of some of those
brave men who perished during the Tripolitan war. The
squadron of Commodore Preble having put into this port to
refit, the Chevalier Landolina generously gave up his country-
house to be used as a hospital for the sick and wounded ; and
those who died were buried in a part of the garden. The spot

AMERICAN CEMETERY. 331

is planted with cypresses, olives, caroobs, and other well chosen
trees.

Tlie graves of the seamen are disposed in rows. Nothing
can be neater than their arrangement and condition. In an
appropriate recess stands the tomb of James S. Deblois, purser
to the Frigate Constitution. He died 30th Nov. ] 803. His
name is carved on a tablet of black jEtnean lava. A
marble slab is set into the face of the wall, on which the figure
of Columbia, in basso relievo, is represented weeping over an
urn. The figure is a full length, finely executed. Under this,
the arms of the United Slates are engraven. The monument
was erected by his brother officers. In another romantic spot
of the garden, is a tomb distinguished by two Doric pillars sup-
porting a pediment and placed against the side of the wall.
Between the pillars, an inscription is neatly carved recording
the names of Lieutenants James Maxwell and Seth Carter,
who died in 1806. The sculptured emblems consist of the
U. S. arms and a laurelled bust weeping. — Peace to their
ashes ! They rest not unhonoured even here.

' How sleep the brave wbo sink to rest
With all their country's honours blest.'

Once more within the city, but on the eve of quitting it finally,
I am reminded that in speaking of the things^ I have nearly
overlooked the men of it ; and have said little of its present
condition in the retrospect of its faded glories. But in fact it
is the shade of this once queenly city, — the manes of buried
Syracuse, — hovering as it were over the spot of her sepulture,
— which chains and engrosses the attention. Fancy depicts her
venerable form dimly, but grandly looming through the mist of
ages, and feels it to be almost a species of irreverence to heed
or to speak of aught else in so majestic a presence.

It has been remarked by travellers, that the m.odern Syracu-
sans show their lineage by their personal traits, particularly the
women, whose Grecian contour of countenance is very apparent.
What is quite as worthy of mention, as illustrating the perma-

332 SYRACUSE.

nency of habit, is, that the distaff, famous from early times
and which Theocritus assures us was invented here, is still in
use by the females. They ply it abroad before the doors of
their houses, and even while walking the streets, and manage it
with great dexterity.

A stranger should be cautious about drawing too sudden or
sweeping inferences from first impressions ; yet with this caveat
in mind, I feel safe in saying, that the houses of Syracusans by
no means abound in those conveniences which an Englishman or
an American thinks essential to comfort. The best proof is, that
no small part of the occupations and amusements of both sexes
are carried on abroad. It is pretty evident, also, that whatever be
the merit of the distaff, the invention of window-glass must owe
its origin to some other people. Its scarcity is poorly compen-
sated by close board shutters, and iron gratings affixed to the
windows, strong as the hurdles used in guarding graves from
the resurrection-men. Cleanliness, too, it would seem, is not
the besetting habit of the citizens of Syracuse. The streets and
entrances to their houses are wofully deficient in this prime
requisite of comfort. Yesterday, I paid my respects to a prin-
cess to whom I came accredited. Her mansion is a spacious
one, and, so far, suitable to her rank ; but the court I found in
the dirtiest condition, and the main stairway in no better. I
was conducted through a suite of apartments nearly unfurnished,
the floors of which, laid in tiles, might have been essentially
improved by the addition of a carpet, but this was a luxury re-
served for the room of state into which I was finally ushered.
There, things were on a better footing ; and I am bound to
add, that the attractions of the fair mistress of the ' palace,' who
to her other accomplishments unites a familiar knowledge of the
English tongue, made a most agreeable contrast to the unpre-
possessing impressions suggested by previous objects.

The fondness of the Sicilians for titles is excessive. Their
number of nobles is manifold. They remind one of Falstaff's
similitude, — ' plenty as blackberries.' The Sicilian peerage
in the whole, comprises probably a greater catalogue of titled

TITLES — POLITICAL SIGNS. 333

personages, In proportion to the population of the island, than
can be foLind in any other country. In the old parliament prior
to 1812, there were 227 nobles besides 61 spiritual peers en-
titled to seats, and they comprehended not one half of the entire
nobility of this small kingdom. By the new constitution, 170
temporal peers only are permitted to serve in parliament, leav-
ing more than 300 excluded from the privilege. The number of
ecclesiastical dignitaries remains the same. Sicily, be it remem-
bered, has a population but a little exceeding one million six hun-
dred thousand souls. Yet it is burdened with this enormous peer-
age under the pompous titles of princes, dukes, marquisses and
barons, — archbishops, bishops and grand priors, —besides the
vice-regal court and Princes of the blood, — to say nothing of a
swarm of chevaliers, and a countless troop of inferior ecclesias-
tics. All this is the fruit of that beautiful order of things called
Monarchical, which blends in unholy alliance the powers of
Church and State, and uses their magic influence, — more ef-
fectual than the philosopher's stone, — to transmute all the pro-
perty of the island into a source of personal emolument and
aggrandizement for the usurping League, and thus to perpetuate
the evils of an overgrown system of abuses.

But the people are beginning to open their eyes to the mon-
strous and too long tolerated inequalities of condition and privi-
lege existing in the social structure, and to understand the
enormity of fraud in which the whole is founded. The polit-
ical explosion of 1820 was but the rumbling, the menace, of the
mustering tempest. Government, by its precautionary measures
of defence, evinces a consciousness of this, and a correspondent
alarm. In addition to the fact heretofore stated, of removing
a part of the cannon and dismounting the remainder belonging
to this rampart, through fear of its being turned against itself,
government has passed a law requiring that every man for the
privilege of keeping a musket shall pay three ducats, and give
tw^o bondsmen for his peaceable behaviour ; and if it be a fowl-
ing-piece, he shall be taxed three dollars more, annually, for the

334 SYRACUSE.

right of using it. This amounts to a prohibition of fire-arms
in respect to the great body of the people, especially as the
officers of the crown undertake to decide who of those that can
afford to pay the charges, are suitable persons to be allowed even
that poor indulgence. A consequence is that game is extremely
abundant in the neighbourhood, so much so, that considering
the wants of the people it was at first a matter of surprise to me,
until, on my remarking upon it to a friend in one of my excursions,
I was told the true cause. The first tax, viz. of three ducats,
has been imposed since 1820 ; the annual cost of using a fowling-
piece, has been lately raised from a half dollar to the present sum.

How different such a state of things from what prevails with
us, where every man capable of shouldering a musket is obliged
by law to possess one, — where, instead of being taxed for the
privilege, he is fined if he neglect it ! In this point of view, the
spectacle presented by the American people is sublime. A
population of thirteen millions of freemen, with an effective force
of a million and a half of armed males existing, not as another
power within, but as an integral part of the Republic, whose
bayonets, instead of being dreaded by the rulers, are prepared to
bristle in defiance of any foreign foe who should dare to plant a
foot within their borders, — such an exhibition is indeed morally
grand. It shows that freedom is the conservative principle of a
state ; that liberty, like knowledge, is power ; and that the gov-
ernment is stablest which emanates from the will and reposes in
the affections of a people. The arms of the citizens of such a
government cannot be turned against its own bosom, for along
with the guilt, there would then be the folly, — the unheard of
madness, of national suicide.

Business of every sort, in Syracuse, is nearly at a stand. It
is pitiable, that its noble harbour, capable of accommodating the
largest fleets, should be almost totally shut up from commerce.
It was a bad day for Syracuse, as well as for Sicily generally,
when the power of Murat was annihilated in Naples, and when
Ferdinand was allowed to return to his old capital. For during
the military occupation of the island by the English, under pre-

STAGNATION OF TRADE — CITIZENS. 335

text of guarding it from the French, money was circulating and
trade was reviving, and many salutary changes and reforms were
in process. The English, while pursuing their own objects here,
were indirectly and essentially promoting the good of the inhab-
itants ; and well it would have been, had Sicily remained in their
permanent possession. But with their withdrawment at the re-
storation, things relapsed into the old state, or in fact into a worse
one if possible, in consequence of the increased taxes levied by
an impoverished court, and the not diminished rapacity of a
merciless aristocracy ; and if the complaints uttered here, be as
loud throughout the island, Sicily must be in a most deplorable
situation.

It has been gratifying to me to hear from all quarters, the most
favorable sentiments avowed toward the United States. Regret
is expressed that our ships of war do not oftener visit the port ;
and the people would be glad if it should be made a sort of
naval depot for our squadrons, like Mahon. Indeed, I doubt
not that, were it consistent with the policy of the United States
to hold any foreign colony, and if an arrangement could be made
with the Neapolitan court to secure to us this port as an indem-
nity for our commercial claims, the Syracusans would not weep
at its transfer to the American flag.

Their personal acquaintance with the citizens of the United
States, has been almost wholly confined to the officers of our navy.
Fortunately in such, they have had favourable specimens of
the American character ; but it is surprising that the steps of
travellers have not been attracted hither. The consul informs
me, that previously to my coming, no American tourist has
visited Syracuse purely for purposes of observation, since he
has been in office, a period of twelve years ; at least none who
have been made known to him, — and Syracuse is not a place
where a stranger would be easily overlooked.

In my intercourse with the inhabitants, I have met with but one
uniform dispositiori to oblige, and a friendly zeal to promote the
objects of my researches and inquiries. I have seen much, and

336

SYRACUSE.

learned more, to inspire me with a liking for their general character.
They are kind, affable, and hospitable, — indolent, not so much
from choice as from necessity, — endued with a good degree of
native perspicacity, — and with a better government than that
under which it is their misfortune to live, they might challenge a
name that would not disparage their renowned extraction, and
emulate the commercial enterprise; though never the warlike
glories, of ancient Syracuse.

CHAPTER XII.

JOURNEY TO CATAJNIA

Preliminaries. — Last View of Syracuse. — Suburban Tombs. — Animal Traits.
— Augusta and Hybla. — Leontine Fields. — Sicilian Inn. — Aspect of the
Country. — Olive Groves; Vineyards. — Rural Economy. — A Ford. — Ap-
proach to Mt. vEtna. — Magnificence of the Scenery. — A Meeting. —
Entrance to Catania. — Former Catastrophes of the City Present Pros-
perity.— Streets and Piazza. — Lavas. — Eruption of 1669. — Sieste. —
Travellers' Annoyances. — Ancient Theatres — Baths. — Public Institu-
tions.

Plain of Leontium; March 13. — JVoon.- — I left Syra-
cuse at five, this morning. It was after a sleepless night, not the
best preparative for a fatiguing day's journey. But the evening
had been occupied to a late hour with pleasant company, and
when it separated, my journal was to be brought up, and I con-
tinued at my table, busy with my pen and insensible to the lapse
of time, till morning broke. A muleteer then called, according
to previous arrangement, for my baggage. The operation of
fixing and adjusting it to the back of the animal which was to
carry it, occupied the better part of an hour. A Yankee would
have required ten minutes at the most ; but the Sicilians have
not learned the proverb, that ' time is money.' Breakfast was
next to be attended to. At length, everything was in order.
The muleteer, with his patient drudge, took up the van of the
march, and I mounted upon a horse and brought up the rear.
A gentleman, lodging in the same house with me, rose to see me
on my way, and gave me the pleasure of his company a mile
or two beyond the Barriers.
43

338 JOURNEY TO CATANIA.

The streets were quiet, few being astir at so early an hour.
Their desertion, combined with the antique aspect of the walls
and structures, gave the city a more than usually gloomy ap-
pearance. At the gates, there were some signs of life. Country
people, with their unfailing attendants, mules and donkeys, were
coming in with their produce for market ; and a few were going
forth from the city to the labours of the field.

1 stopped at the tomb of Archimedes. It was near the route
which I was to travel, and I was glad of an opportunity to pay it
one more visit. Archimedes was the Newton of his age, and whole
generations in advance of it. In the science of mechanics, per-
haps, he never has been equalled. Not only was he great as
a philosopher ; history has recorded his worth as a man. No
one stain has she traced upon his character. He was honoured
and admired while living ; he was lamented at death, and his
memory has been reverenced by the wise and good of every
succeeding age.

While resting at the philosopher's tomb, the sun rose with full
splendour. jEtna in the distance was seen to catch and reflect
his golden beams — the snows on its summit looking like clouds
of fleecy brightness. The scene, throughout, was one of great
beauty. Behind me were the rocky heights of Epipolae,
once crowned with embattled towers ; in front, the naked
plain of Acradina, lovely even in desolation, was spread
out in its length and breadth. Syracuse, a conspicuous object,
was sufficiently removed to appear well, — its dirt forgot or at
least forgiven. Across the bay, the bold promontory of Plem-
myrium was discerned, but by no means answering to its
ancient epithet of ' stormy,' for the blue broad sea reposed
tranquilly about it. — Still, who could look upon that scene with-
out sad emotions ! How numerous the reflections, and how
solemn as numerous, which were sure to be called up by the
objects concentrated in that one view ! Syracuse, once like
Tyre, exalted to Heaven, alas, what fell ruin has come upon
her ! Star of the morning, how art thou fallen !

Towns. 330

Taking a last look of the ancient cit}-, and plucking a little blue
flower from a crevice in the walls of the tomb of that great
man, whose name would alone be enough to render Syracuse
forever memorable, — I parted from my friend, and turned to
pursue my solitary way. The guide with the sumpter had gone
before, and I was not sorry to be alone. Two miles further, on
mounting an eminence, I remarked on the steep slope of a hill
which stretched to my left, a range of openings hewn in the
rock, some arched, some square, and others oblong, but all of
them so many entrances to tombs. In their general appearance
they were much like those of the Strada Sepolcrale in the
quarter of Neapolis. Even the path which I travelled, although
the highway used for ages, passed over tombs. A French
tourist not long since found, in the course of some excavations
which he undertook, sepulchres, which had been unknown
and unsuspected, actually beneath the public road. He caused
them to be opened, and bones, lachrymatories, and in some of
them, cinerary urns were discovered. I had to turn my horse
aside from several of the unclosed pits, to prevent falling into
them. In another place an hour after, I perceived on the side
of a long rocky ridge more remote from the road, a row of
tombs which extended for a full half mile. Indeed, they have
occurred so frequently on the ride as, at last, scarcely to excite
attention. The immense number of tombs found in the neigh-
bourhood of Syracuse confirms the accounts which have been
given of the abundance of its former population. ^^

The country was chiefly rugged and neglected. For the
first few miles the road was bare rock. It is a species of lime-
stone, hard at the surface, but like the rock of Malta, soft and
easily penetrable when the crust has been worn through.
The tracks of horses and mules have bored deep holes in it,
and the rains in some places have scooped out channels.
The way is entirely impassable by wheels, and it is bad
enough for equestrians. It is obstructed by many loose stones,
lying on the main bed of rock, — some large with craggy
points, others small and rolling, — and a fall on them would as-

340 JOURNEY TO CATANIA.

siiredly produce serious injury by bruise or fracture, if nothing
worse. I rode the first league with no little apprehension, espe-
cially in descending hills ; and I wished myself more than once
on the back of a mule, distrusting the safety of my horse's
tread. But T found the fear to be perfectly imaginary, as
the careful steed never missed or faltered in his steps, except
once or twice at the beginning, when in dangerous places
I undertook to guide him and placed less confidence in his
discretion than my own. For the rest, he trod with admirable
precision, choosing the safest spots in difficult passes with the
utmost caution, though frequently obliged to step into holes of
the rock full knee-deep ; and hitherto, thanks to his better sa-
gacity, he has brought me in perfect safety.

Having complimented his understanding, I wish I could say
as much for his comeliness. In truth, he was a homely nag,
obliged to make up in solid points for what he wanted in showy
ones. But in a country where mules and jacks are almost uni-
versally used in journeying, I was assured it was a piece of
good fortune to procure a horse at all. The equipments were
in sorry plight ; of this the stirrups were a fair specimen. One
was so narrow I could scarcely squeeze the toe of my boot into
it. The other might have fitted the foot of a Cyclops.

As for the mule which I employed, his strength and patience
were quite as marvellous as the shrewdness of the horse which
I rode. From the quantity of my luggage, I presumed that
two mules would be requisite for sumpters. But, no, it was
said ; — a mule, by law, may be burdened with — I know not how
many pounds' weight, and my travelling lading was not half the
amount. The whole was therefore girt upon the back of one,

— with the addition of an immense packsaddle, a formidable
pair of panniers, and other sundries belonging to the muleteer,

— and when I overtook him, I found that he himself, though a
man of the usual size, was mounted upon the animal and jogging
on with a perfectly careless air. It seemed as if the creature's
back must break under such a load. But remonstrances were

The fellow only smiled at what he deemed my

AUGUSTA — UYBL A — LENTINI. 34 1

misplaced humanity, and to show how unnecessary it was, im-
mediately whipped the animal into a brisk trot.

Leaving tlie hilly country, the road wound down to the sea-
shore, and followed the margin of the beach of Magnisi. The
promontory of that name, distinguished by a stout martello
tower, appeared at a little distance on my right. The path then
deviated, penetrating once more into the country, and crossing the
neck of a broad peninsula on the extremity of which the city of
Augusta is built. This place with its castle was a prominent
object for some miles. It looked very respectably, indeed
beautifully, but better undoubtedly than nearer to, and still
more so than within, its decaying walls. The town is said
to contain about eight thousand inhabitants, the most of them
wretchedly poor. It is chiefly memorable for the destructive
ravages of an earthquake which occurred a century ago, when
great numbers of people Were crushed to death under the ruins
of their houses, and others were destroyed by means of a sul-
phurous vapour finding its way to a powder magazine, and causing
it to explode with tremendous violence. From the peninsula
a cape projects towards the north, which figures in Sicilian
annals as the place where the Empress Helena landed with the
Holy Cross on her return from Jerusalem. It is thence called
Capo Santo Croce.

In the course of the ride Hybla was seen, that beautiful
Hybla, famous in olden times for the abundance and excellence
of its honey, and, judging from the profusion of thyme and the
aroma of a thousand wild flowers in its neighbourhood, still
capable of maintaining its ancient reputation. At length we
entered on a level tract, once teeming with the fruits of hus-
bandry but now almost totally despoiled of culture, in the midst
of which was a miserable Fondaco, the only Inn which offered,
and here I have stopped for rest and food.

This plain, which I prefer to call by the old name of Leon-
tium, though changed in modern times to that of Lentini, is
famous for the tradition that here wheat was first cultivated and
used as food, and hence introduced into Greece and Italy along

342 JOURNEY TO CATANIA.

with the worship of Ceres. The soil has lost nothing of its
natural fertility and only wants a colony of enterprising settlers,
Hke our western emigrants, to make it yield an exuberance of
the richest products. Its present neglect is truly, deplorable.
Lentini, the capital, is built on a hill not far off. Antiquaries
recognise it as the habitation of the Lgestrigones, the most ancient
inhabitants of Sicily, and they have given the name of Campi Laes-
trigonii to the surrounding fields. The people were a gigantic
race according to Homer, and, if we may credit the same vera-
cious authority, not particularly given to the worship of Ceres,
for they destroyed eleven of Ulysses' ships, and made a banquet
of their crews. It is almost idle to refer to such mythological
tales, but as they occur in the writings of one who, because he
was the prince of poets, it has been the fashion to cry up as his-
torian, geographer, philosopher, theogonist, in short, the professor
of every art and science relative to antiquity, — it is impossible
to pass them by in entire silence. Many a classical scholar who
would flout the accounts given in sacred history of the sons
of Anak, the race of Emims, of Og, king of Bashan, and his
iron bedstead nine cubits long, can yet read with perfect respect,
nay, confidence, the Homeric fictions of Lssstrigonians and the
Cyclops — of Antiphates, Polyphemus and a host of other mon-
sters — ' of size enormous and terrific mien.'

During the Qusestorship of Cicero, so fruitful was this district
in corn, that he called it the grand magazine of Sicily, and its
wine was reputed to be the best in the island. Now, a little rice
and some hemp and flax constitute its productions. Its depopu-
lated condifion is partly ascrikable to the unwholesome air,
caused by the Foggie or wet grounds along the shore of the
Lake Biviere, just back of the town of Lentini. The evil is
regarded as inevitable, but it is probable that a lltde attention to
draining the earth, especially by deepening the outlet, now much
choked up, leading from the lake to the sea, would remedy the
mal'aria, and make the air as salubrious as in former times.

But as I am impatient to leave the Fondaco, I shall wind up
my notes after saying a word or two of my accommodations.

A FOiNDACO — CASE OF CONSCIENCE. 343

It is more of an ostlery than an inn, but it is the only place of
rest answering to either description which I have noticed during
the whole ride. It is a low single-story hut, built of stone,
having a stable at one end and the house part at the odier. A
New England barn would be a mirror of cleanliness in com-
parison with such a hovel. I had a table set out for my use at
some distance from this wigwam, in order to escape the offen-
sive atmosphere about it, and my dinner has been furnished from
a basket of provisions which I brought from Syracuse. Every
traveller in the island who studies comfort mAist provide for
his own wants on the road, including all the portable articles
from the substantial of cold roast, down to tea, sugar and con-
diments.— A Sicilian of respectable appearance, whom 1 over-
took a few miles back travelling upon a mule, and who stopped
at the Fondaco to bait, w^as invited to share with me in such
fare as my stores offered ; and this he did with a keen zest. It
being Lent, a season of prohibition of meats to all good Catho-
lics, I had my doubts at first how far the casuistry of my com-
panion might avail him to satisfy his appetite, and at the same
time to quiet his conscience. But he settled all by saying as
I carved a fowl ; — ' The Sicilians don't eat meat now. They
must not taste that j)oIIastro,^ (pointing to the pullet ;) ' but I
am an American, I am an Englishman, I am of all nations. So
I can bear a part and join you.' This was accompanied with
a certain knowing look, followed by an attempt at a chuckle;
and in justice to him I am bound to say that he gave me no
cause to doubt his character or professions as a cosmopolite. Nor
was he the only one ; for during the entertainment three stout,
hungry dogs, grim as Cerberus, posted themselves beside us
with mouths watering. They had not probably heard of the
Lent ; — at any rate, when we finished, they made no scruple
of striking in for their share of the rations.

Catania ; — eight, P. M. — My journey is at length accom-
plished, but not so my journal. The labour of the one exacts
the other, and it is difficult to say which is hardest. As the

344 JOURNEY TO CATANIA.

ground must be retraced in description sooner or later, it is better
to do it now than on the morrow ; wherefore, ' Andiamo.'

In looking back on the journey, I have to record, in the first
place, a feeling of disappointment and surprise in respect to the
general appearance of the country. With the exception of the
last few miles, its aspect has been that of impoverishment, rude-
ness, and prevailing desolation. The distance of this city from
Syracuse is fortytwo miles. The route I travelled is the
great highway which has been beaten by the footsteps of man
and beast for a period of between two and three thousand
years. It has led me over that portion of country so renowned
for its fertility in former times, as to have claimed for the whole
island the appellation of Granary of Rome. Yet of nearly all
of it I am obliged to say, it is a forbidding waste.

The part of the island thus far ssen. — with the exception
again made in favour of this immediate neighbourhood, and to
which I shall attempt to do justice in the proper place, — has
nearly lapsed into its primitive barbarism. It differs in one
respect from the wilder parts of the United States, namely, that
it is almost entirely denuded of trees. Instead of the deep^
solemn forests of my native land, whose shades are grateful, and
whose immensity has a species of grandeur which partly com-
pensates in the absence of other objects, the country is open
and bare, — exhibiting rocks and craggy hills interspersed with
uncultivated plains, a few turbid streams rushing impetuously
toward the sea, some half ruinous towns like Augusta, Hybla,
and Lentini, but no village on the immediate route, only a
lonely house here and there, and no scenes of stirring and suc-
cessful industry to gladden the eye or cheer the heart, — such is
the general outline of much that has fallen under my observa-
tion today. Abstract from the scene its numerous historic and
classic associations, forget that Sicily it was, and litde intrinsi-
cally would be left to interest.

So much for the mass ; — let me now go back to some par-
ticulars which at first sight may be thought to make against this
sweeping conclusion. I passed a few olive plantations, but they

ASPECT OF THE COUNTRY. 345

were very ill-looking. The olive tree, though valuable, is
destitute of all pretensions to beauty. The form of the leaf is
like the common willow, but its green is deep like the plum-leaf,
and its texture is much thicker. The trunk of the tree is
almost always crooked or inclined, and a grove of olives at a
distance looks not unlike one of our old-fashioned orchards of
gnarled, sour, cider-press apple trees. I saw several vineyards,
but they were of no great extent ; and with the mode of traiiiing
common to Sicily, a vineyard cannot be an attractive object.
The shoots are just beginning to appear. By the side of each
of the plants, a small cane is stuck in the ground for the twining
of the tendrils. It is about a yard, or at the most, not more
than a yard and a half, in height ; so that a field of grape vines
thus trained, can look no better than a field of Indian corn
before the stalk begins to arise, and by no means so w^ell as when
with us that beautiful, flowery stem is fully shot up. '^^ Occa-
sionally during the journey, I saw orange and citron trees, (some
in bearing,) also the fig, almond, palmetta and others, but they
were few and far between. Around the poor dwellings which
1 passed, the common cactus was growing ; and well it might,
for, according to Pliny, it is indigenous to Sicily. I remarked
towards the close of the ride some aloes of very large dimen-
sions ; and from what I observed, the native Flora of the island
must be beautiful. I counted upwards of twenty varieties of wild
flowers as I journeyed, many of which I gathered to add to my
herbarium. But all these things, which I have now cordially
allowed for, were too inconsiderable to serve as an offset to the
generally unfavourable aspect of the country.

I saw no women, with very few exceptions, through the day.
It is not usual, I understand, to find them employed in the
fields in this part of Sicily. Mules and jacks were sometimes
met, toiling with burdens which shamed the comparatively in-
significant loading of my sturdy quadruped, great as I had pre-
viously thought it. These animals were tied in strings of six or
eight, following in regular file a leader, which the driver would
guide, mounted. In the little ploughing which I saw, oxen were
44

346 JOURNEY TO CATANIA.

ussd for draught. They were a stout and strong breed, with
horns prodigiously long, more than double the size of those of
our bullocks. The plough was the clumsiest thing imaginable,
saving the still ruder one used by the peasants of Malta. It has
but one handle, and the b'ade cannot penetrate the glebe
half the depth which would be needful in good tillage. As
for the equipments of my horse and the gear of my mule,
awkward as they were, 1 found they were quite favorable spe-
cimens of the Sicilian art of harness-making. And then for the
road, — if any one has seen a cow path among the rockiest
wilds of the coast of ' old Essex,' he may form a tolerable
notion of its finish and accommodation. The best part of it, at
least by far the most pleasant, was a natural road, that is to say,
the sea-shore, and no thanks were due for this to his majesty of
the Two Sicilies.

Two or three considerable streams were met, which could
only be crossed by fording. One of them I was obliged
to pass at its mouth where it enters the sea. In fact, the
fording ground was considerably beyond its outlet, on a subma-
rine bar which the tides have heaved up ; and the only method
to know the course of this was to send a man before, with a
pole, to grope the way which my horse was to follow. The
guide was stripped to his shirt as he set forth on the exploration,
and even that precaution did not avail him much, for the water
reached to his waist. The surf was quite considerable at
either end of the bar, breaking upon the beach in large waves ;
and I had serious fears whether my horse could secure his foot-
hold. However, there was no alternative but to pass the Rubi-
con. The surf was breasted, but the track was soon lost, and
the horse, as I expected, was obliged to make good his passage
by swimming. Arrived at the other side, the sight of the
tumbling breakers was not more agreeable to him than to his
rider. He v/as unwilling to enter it and hung back awhile, and I
did not know but that I should be obliged fairly to put to sea with
him, and bid adieu to the land trip. But a wave at last swept us
to shore, dashing over the saddle-bow and half burying us, and

APPROACH TO MOUNT iETNA. 347

once more both horse and horseman were glad to find them-
selves on firm ground. In addition to these streams two larger
rivers were crossed in crazy ferry boats. '^^ Now, in what part of
America would not good substantial bridges be found in such
places? The condition of a thoroughfare generally bears some
relation to the importance of the place to which it principally con-
ducts. But Catania is a city greater than Messina, and second only

to Palermo in wealth and population, in all Sicily. And this

is an ' old country ! ' yes, old enough in all conscience to have
hit upon and put in practice some of those improvements, called
' notions,' which New England of yesterday enjoys and may
justly boast.

Lava I saw not for the first twelve miles. I then crossed a
small hill composed of it and volcanic scoriae. Some patches
of the material were seen a few miles further on ; but the gen-
uine jEtnean lava I did not meet with till within about a league
of this city. At first the fences began to be made of it, then
some houses ; at length the road was carried over uninterrupted
beds of lava, and finally paved with it.

After leaving the ford which subjected me to so much incon-
venience, and continuing my ride along the beach, a new scene
opened, ^tna then began to assume its peculiar features of sub-
limity. Its form took a grandeur which I could not but gaze
upon with increasing admiration. It spread out in magnificent
display the huge dimensions of its base and sides ; and though
ils top was at first obscured, the general effect was no ways
diminished, as the outline was filled up by the imagination from
the proportions of the Mount which were visible, and the peak
was carried to a greater elevation, perhaps, than it actually would
bear to the eye. But there were moments from the first when
its summit could* be plainly discerned, far overtopping the clouds
which hung against its declivities ; and during the last hour's ride
it was constantly in view. The masses of vapour which had con-
densed about the mountain were then parted and thrown back.
They were not light and fleecy, but those hard clouds seen by
us in times of clear, brisk northwesters, and which wear the

348 JOURNEY TO CATANIA.

aspect of a certain stability. As they stretched on either hand
they gave their ample folds, like broad etherial banners, to
brighten with every hue of the setting sun. Its rays, at the
same time, played refulgently on the mountain brow, which
seemed to lean upon the azure vault of the firmament, far up-
lifted from the storms and mutations of earthly things. The
poet finely conceived, without ever being favoured with the sight,
of this very spectacle of JEtna, when speaking of the servant of
the living God and the grandeur of his hope in immortality, he
compared him to

— ' Some tall cliff that lifts its awful form,
Swells from the vale and midway leaves the storm ,
Tho' round its breast the rolling clouds are spread.
Eternal sunshine settles on its head.'

I could not satisfy myself but once that I saw smoke issuing
from the crater, and then it was a thin, darkish vapour soon dis-
sipated. Since arriving here I have learned that ^tna has of late
been tranquil, and only emitted light wreadis of smoke. The
inhabitants, consequently, are as fearless as though the mountain
had never burned, nor their houses been shaken to the ground,
nor rivers of fire run down their streets. Yet Catania, it is
said, has seven times been swept with torrents of lava, and
thrice been totally destroyed. It is now more populous than
ever. And though built up with the memorials and instruments
of its former catastrophes and desolations, — though founded
upon lava, constructed of lava, paved with lava, — and though
destined, in all human probability, to another, perhaps speedy,
overthrow, — still its crowds of human beings dwell carelessly,
and at ease. They believe, — and they live and act in the
conviction, — -that their 'mountain,' like David's, 'stands strong.''
And with all the lessons of the past before their eyes, and
in view of the ravages which have befallen their city, their
example is singularly instructive. It proves, that as man is
seldom the better for the experience of others, he is all but
equally so for the experience of himself,

BEAUTY AND SUBLIMITY. 349

I have spoken of the appearance of Mina during the last
stage of my journey ; hut there was an assemblage of objects in
the sceneiy then exhil)ited, of a character to suit the most fas-
tidious taste. It was difficult to say whedier the beautiful or
the subliuie predominated. Before me, was the mountain con-
stantly enlarging as nearer approached. On iny right, was the
blue expanse of the Mediterranean, not still, but moderately
ruffled ; and the wind which set in toward the shore produced
a swell, just large enough to be pleasing to the eye, rolling and
breaking along the sands in billows of snowy whiteness. A few
Sicilian pollache and paranzelli — vessels fantastic, but not un-
pleasing, in their trim and models, — were sailing in the bay.
To the left, a succession of verdant plains w^as seen stretching
for leagues till bounded by craggy hills of romantic forms.
Herds and flocks in great numbers were grazing in the pastures.
The breeze wafted the music of their little bells ; and the air
was perfumed with the odours of the sweetest wild flowers.

Meanwhile, Catania began to rise as from the sea, — coming
up like a second Venus from the bosom of the waves, — and
displaying her white turrets, and spires, and domes with fairy grace.
The slopes of jEtna, midway and downwards, were clothed
with softest verdure, and diversified with innumerable habitations,
— cottages and palaces, castles and convents, towns, villages
and hamlets. Above the vineyards, a broad belt of olive groves,
and still higher, of oaks, chesnuts, beeches and evergreens
girdled the mountain ; — then bald cliffs appeared, — then snows
half hid in a drapery of clouds, — and lastly, in solemn, solitary
and moveless state, the hoary peak of old iEtna, — the rim of
its crater perfectly defined with a line of sablest hue, and lead-
ing the imagination to complete the effect of the whole, by re-
flecting on the inexhaustible stores of volcanic fires engulfed in
its deep caverns. Those fires now slumber. The elemental
powers which have so often produced the most awful devasta-
tions, are hushed in temporary repose. Yet they wait but the
mandate of the Omnipotent, to exert their utmost terrors. ' He

350 JOURNEY TO UATANIA.

tOLicheth the mountains and they smoke. They flow down at
His presence.'

Riding along the strand I passed the recent wrecks of
some vessels of considerable size, cast high upon the
beach. Inquiring of the muleteer, I learned that they
were barks of Girgenti going to Naples with corn, and were
caught off this coast in a violent gale which they were unable
to beat against, and being driven ashore, were totally lost.
They were literally broken to pieces. In one place was a stern
with the name of a vessel unworn and plain ; in another, some
hundred yards distant, a forecastle ; further on, a large part of
a hull turned bottom upwards. They seemed to have been
strong vessels, and from the newness of the paint, looked like
wrecks not a week old.

On approaching the city and about half a league from its
gates, I met two gentlemen on horseback, who surveyed me as a
stranger with some attention while they passed, and afterwards
made inquiries of the muleteer, who was then behind. Under-
standing that I was an American, they turned back, and overtak-
ing me, introduced themselves and entered into conversation in
English. — ' You are from America ? ' — ' And you, gentlemen,
are not Sicilians.' — ^ No,' they replied, ^ we are Englishmen,
but residents in Catania, and the only two of our countrymen es-
tablished here.' Conversation became at once free and friendly.
' I should know,' said one of them, ' that you came from Sy-
racuse by the bunch of papyrus which your mule carries.' —
They confirmed, in connexion, the account that the reed
grows no where naturally in Sicily except on the Anapus.
On my asking if any Americans had visited Catania for some
time past ; — ' none ' — said they, — ' for two or three years.
There is one of your countrymen at Messina,' added the
younger. ' He is a mercantile partner of a brother of
mine. It is Mr P. of Boston.' — ' So then,' said I, * this is a
singular coincidence. I bear letters of introduction both from
Gibraltar and Malta to the house of Messrs P. and R. at Mes-
sina ; and what is more, I have a letter to a brother of the
second of those gentlemen who resides in Catania. He thus

CATASTROPHES OF THE CITY. 351

proves to be no other than yourself.' — 'We proceeded, the re-
mainder of the way, on the footing of old acquaintance. They
brought me to the Albergo, where I am lodged, on the principal
square of the city, bespoke the attentions of the landlord, and
then left me to rest.

It is a house which promises well, and from present ap-
pearances I hope to enjoy here the true ' Dapes et mensae Si-
culae.' Among the refreshments served this evening I have
drank the most delicious sherbet cooled with snow from Mount
jEtna. It recalled a line in Martial,

Tu super aestivas, Alcime, solve nives. '72
He wanted the grateful refrigerant to improve his old Falernian.
But I would not have exchanged the luxury of my simpler
beverage for the ' duos sextantes ' of his ruby liquid. I go to
enjoy the more precious restorative of balmy sleep, compared
with which every other cordial, even the nectar of Olympus,
would be ' stale, flat and unprofitable.'

March, 14. — Today I have contented myself with taking a
general glance at things, and have been rather laying out the
ground for future observation than entering into a minute in-
spection of particular objects. I find there is much to be
examined. For little as Catania is known to the modern world
generally, it is a city second in historic renown only to Syracuse,
of all the great towns of Sicily. Palermo, In point of impor-
tance, is a creature of yesterday compared with the antiquity of
this splendid capital of the Val Demona.

Catania,

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Full text of "Travels in Malta and Sicily, with sketches of Gibraltar in 1827"

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